Communication from the National Security Bureau
Pursuant to Article 26 item 1 of the Act from 11 March 2022 on the Defence of Homeland, the President of the Republic of Poland carries out tasks in the realm of security and defence with the assistance of the National Security Bureau.
On April 26, 2023, at around 8.15 p.m., the Head of the National Security Bureau, Jacek Siewiera, was informed by the Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of National Defence, Mariusz Błaszczak, about the finding, in a forest near Bydgoszcz, of an unidentified military object which could be a Russian-made cruise missile, bearing features of long-term exposure to environmental factors at the site of the find.
The President of the Republic of Poland, Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, Andrzej Duda was informed about the occurrence immediately – at about 8.30 p.m. (2.30 a.m. local time in Mongolia where the President was on a visit) in a direct conversation through special means of communication. The information was previously verified by one of the intelligence services. The President of the Republic of Poland required the organization of an urgent meeting at the National Security Bureau, which took place at 9.00 a.m. (April, 27 2023) and was classified. It aimed at harmonizing the knowledge of all the involved authorities. The Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces requested information from the competent services and bodies.
Since becoming aware of the incident, the President of the Republic of Poland has been kept informed of the results of the ongoing activities.
As of today (May 12, 2023) the National Security Bureau has not received any requests which constituted the subject of yesterday`s (May 11, 2023) press conference held by the Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of National Defence, Mariusz Błaszczak. When such document is filed with the National Security Bureau, it will undergo a detailed analysis while the conclusions will be immediately presented to the Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces.
The information which the President of the Republic of Poland has at his disposal at this point in time provides no grounds for taking decisions on individual members of the top leadership of the Polish Armed Forces. Furthermore, the President has not received any request in this matter. The President believes that a responsible course of action is required in order to avoid making hasty decisions. The National Security Bureau is working to establish all the circumstances of the incident.