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According to the Berlin defense ministry on Tuesday, Germany has offered to prolong the deployment of three Patriot air defense units in Poland to the end of 2023.
In January, Berlin provided Poland with the missile batteries as part of a larger NATO effort to fortify its eastern flank in the wake of Vladmir Putin’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
The ministry stated in a statement that “an extension beyond the end of 2023 is not foreseen,” adding that some of Germany’s Patriot units were required for use by NATO’s fast reaction force in 2024, while others had to undergo maintenance.
Some 300 German soldiers and three Patriot air defense batteries have been stationed in the Polish town of Zamosc, which is 50 kilometers (31 miles) from the Ukrainian border, since the beginning of the year to guard the southern town and its vital railroad connection to Ukraine.
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Stray Missile Prompts Patriot Mission Deployment
The deployment was brought about by a stray Ukrainian missile that accidentally hit the nearby Polish settlement of Przewodow in November, raising concerns that the conflict in Ukraine would spread across the border.
German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius ignored a request to extend the Patriot mission made by his Polish counterpart during a July visit to Zamosc.
The ruling nationalist Law and Justice (PiS) party in Warsaw and Berlin are at odds on a variety of topics, including the deployment of weapons to Ukraine and Poland’s rejection of an EU migration accord.
To stop approaching missiles, ground-based air defense systems like Raytheon’s Patriot are designed.
Yet, because many partners reduced the number of air defense units during the Cold War, they are in low supply across NATO.
Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, NATO allies rushed to fill any gaps in their own stockpiles while also giving Kiev air defense equipment to stave off Russian assaults.
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Source: Reuters
