Head of BBN: Poland should not let itself be drawn in by Russian intimidation narrative
Poland should not let itself be drawn in by Russia's intimidation narrative, head of the National Security Bureau (BBN) Stanislaw Koziej said Wednesday commenting Russia's plans to move Iskander missiles to its Poland-bordering Kaliningrad enclave.
Earlier on Wednesday BBN held a sitting of the National Security Council (RBN) devoted to Russia's was doctrine and its implications for Poland.
Commenting Russia's Iskander movements, announced as part of a military exercise, Koziej said the ploy was to a degree a propaganda war against Poland. However, he warned "not to play by Russia's rules" in responding to the situation.
"Russia's military activity must be approached from two aspects. On one hand it is quite natural for troops to exercise, on the other, this is to a degree a propaganda war against us", Koziej remarked, adding that in its response Poland "should not let itself be drawn in by Russia's narrative based on intimidation and blackmail".
"Let's just do our job. Let us train, let us upgrade our forces, let us move allied NATO forces here, let them exercise here. Let us expand and modernise our armed forces. And this is what we are doing", Koziej declared.
He added that the Iskander redeployment was nothing new as Russia had made similar announcements regularly in the past years.
"I wish to remark that these famous Iskanders which are the cause of today's commotion are something we have spoken about for the past several years. Once in a while (...) the Russians announce that they will be deploying an Iskander (in Kaliningrad - PAP) as part of their training, and then take it away again", Koziej said.
Defence Minister Tomasz Siemoniak, who also attended the RBN sitting, confirmed that Russia had spoken about moving Iskander missiles to Kaliningrad for several years.
Asked about the condition of Poland's armed forces, Koziej said its weakest point was the lack of a missile defence system. He added that missile defence was a top priority in Poland's military modernisation programme.
Source: PAP