Poland sets 2 billion euro plan for anti-drone wall on Russian border

Polish Deputy Defense Minister Cezary Tomczyk, in a statement to The Guardian, reported that the first elements of the new anti-drone defense system on the country’s eastern border would appear by the middle of 2026 or “sooner.”

Tomczyk stated that the system, referred to as the “anti-drone wall,” will combine the necessary tools for the detection and destruction of unmanned aerial vehicles.

Tomczyk noted that the entire system, designed to “repel potential attacks from Russia,” would be ready within 24 months.

It was stated that the system will include not only missile complexes, artillery batteries, machine guns, and electronic warfare vehicles, but also ground blocking equipment that can be set up within a few hours.

The Deputy Minister emphasized that this system would be integrated into fortifications created approximately a decade ago, becoming part of a multi-layered defense line.

Cost of the anti-drone wall is 2 billion euros

The cost of the project is estimated to be 2 billion euros. It was indicated that the majority of the funding would be provided from European Union (EU) funds under the European Defence Action (SAFE) loan program, while a portion would come from the Polish state budget.

Tomczyk pointed out that certain weapons, such as multiple rocket launcher systems, would only be used in wartime conditions due to the potential danger they pose to the civilian population.

Polish authorities declared their intention to create a wall against drones last month. This decision was made after approximately 20 Russian drones entered the country’s territory in September.

In the incident where some drones covered a distance of more than 200 kilometers, Polish and NATO armed forces shot down three unmanned aerial vehicles through joint efforts.

Patriot systems proved insufficient against cheap drones

The incident revealed the alliance’s unpreparedness in combating cheap drones. Fighter jets, missiles, aerial reconnaissance aircraft, radars of Patriot systems, and Polish air defense systems were used for the detection, tracking, and destruction of the drones.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen had called for the creation of a wall against unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) along the EU’s entire eastern flank.

In addition to Poland, Finland, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Norway, Romania, and Denmark—which had to close airports due to unidentified drone infiltrations—supported this initiative.

However, at a meeting of European leaders held at the end of September, no agreement was reached on the construction of a joint wall because countries far from the Russian border found the plan costly and unrealistic.

Shelter capacity is only 3% of the population

Although Poland ranks first in NATO in military spending by allocating approximately 5% of its GDP, deficiencies in civil defense infrastructure have become a subject of debate.

Speaking to the Financial Times, Slawomir Cenckiewicz, the Head of the Polish National Security Bureau and chief advisor to President Karol Nawrocki, stated that the government neglected the renovation of shelters and other defense infrastructure while focusing on arms procurement.

Cenckiewicz assessed, “We really need to increase the resilience of the civilian population. In recent years, Poland focused on the modernization of the armed forces and forgot about this.”

The report noted that most existing shelters are in a “pitiful state” and many date back to the Eastern Bloc era.

It was recorded that approximately one thousand shelters determined to be suitable for use could protect only 3% of Poland’s population.

The Financial Times pointed out that in Finland, which has a population one-sixth the size of Poland’s, shelters can accommodate at least 80% of the public.

It was stated that the Donald Tusk government would introduce a requirement for construction companies to allocate shelter space in new buildings starting from 2026 and allocated 16 billion zlotys (3.8 billion euros) from the budget for shelter construction.

Retired Polish General Jaroslaw Gromadzinski stated that cities were expanded without considering the protection of people in crisis situations, using the expression, “Protecting the civilian population is not as simple and fast as buying weapons.”