WARSAW
Poland is not taking part in any US military operation linked to Iran, Defense Minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz said Tuesday.
“No such request has been made. Poland is not participating in this operation,” Kosiniak-Kamysz told private broadcaster RMF FM during a visit to the United States.
His remarks come amid growing questions about whether more NATO members – including Poland – could be drawn into the broadening conflict in the Middle East.
Speaking to Polish media on the sidelines of his US visit, the defense minister warned that an outbreak of war in the Middle East could significantly strain global arms production and supply chains.
“Polish, European and American industries must shift into sixth gear,” he said, adding that the Western arms industry should go into “full alert mode.”
He noted that US weapons are used not only by American forces but also by US allies in the Persian Gulf.
“All of this will affect production capacity and the transfer of this production to Ukraine, as well as European purchases of American equipment for Ukraine. This is also a Polish matter,” he said. “I have no information about delays, but these are only the first few days, so we will be analyzing this very carefully.”
The minister also pointed to wider geopolitical implications of instability involving Iran, particularly the shutdown of the Strait of Hormuz – a critical chokepoint for global oil shipments. Russia could benefit economically from the disruption, he warned, as higher global energy prices would boost revenues from its raw material exports.
Kosiniak-Kamysz was in the US to attend a ceremony at which President Donald Trump posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor to Sgt. Michael Ollis. The American soldier was killed in Afghanistan in 2013 while shielding a wounded Polish officer, Capt. Karol Cierpica, who also attended the ceremony.