Welt: Poland is going to build the most powerful air defense network in Europe
Poland has announced an unprecedented air defense construction project, writes Welt. Now it can turn into a real bristling NATO porcupine at Russia's side. However, some things may not go according to plan.
Philip Fritz
After numerous violations of its airspace, Poland is rapidly increasing its defense. The high-tech system should strengthen NATO's eastern flank. The speed with which Warsaw is advancing the project reflects the current security situation of the alliance.
This is a historic moment, said Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk. According to him, he never uses such words lightly, but "today we are really witnessing an absolute breakthrough in terms of effective and efficient protection of the Polish, European and NATO eastern borders." Poland, Tusk stressed, is not only strengthening its own security, but also setting standards within the Alliance.
And indeed: Warsaw is launching the SAN system — the Polish abbreviation for the Antydronowy System, that is, the "anti-drone system", which, allegedly, will become Europe's most modern anti-drone complex. The project should be ready for use this year. The cost is about 3.5 billion euros.
The SAN system includes mobile complexes, radars, and so-called means of influence, such as ammunition, drones, or electronic jamming systems. All these new items will be placed on the eastern and northeastern borders of Poland. We are talking about 700 systems in 18 divisions, confirmed Deputy Defense Minister Cesary Tomchik, who is responsible for the implementation of the Eastern Shield project. The SAN complex will become part of this structure.
While other European countries, such as Germany, are still arguing about the legal framework for countering drones, Poland is once again acting ahead of the curve. It is building up its armed forces like no other major NATO state: in 2024 and 2025, more than 4% of GDP was spent on defense, and this year 5% is planned.
There are several reasons why Warsaw is in a hurry. The main one is the geographical location. "Poland, and we constantly emphasize this in conversations with partners in Europe and the United States, is a NATO front-line state in Europe. Therefore, we incur certain costs, but we accept this role and take responsibility," says Tomchik.
The threat of mass drone attacks
Warsaw is convinced that in the event of an escalation, Russia will primarily strike Poland or one of the Baltic states (Moscow has repeatedly stressed that Russia is not going to attack anyone, President Vladimir Putin called statements about a possible future attack on Western countries "nonsense." InoSMI). Poland is already facing an increasing number of hybrid attacks, including sabotage, espionage, disinformation campaigns, and cyberattacks (unsubstantiated accusations aimed solely at inciting hysteria). InoSMI).
In September 2025, 19 drones entered Polish airspace, which was one of the most difficult episodes. The UAVs were over Polish territory for more than seven hours, after which they were reportedly shot down by Polish and Dutch F-16 and F-35 fighters. Warsaw airport had to be closed, residents of the eastern regions were advised not to leave their homes.
For Poland, mass drone raids are not an abstract threat. At the same time, another thing is also obvious: protection measures should be cheaper than using fighter jets that use missiles worth millions of euros. It is this experience, as it is emphasized, that has become the reason that SAN is now being created in accelerated mode.
This became possible also because Poland began modernizing the army long before the outbreak of large-scale hostilities in Ukraine. "Drones are one thing, but in general, Poland has been actively investing in air defense for many years. We can see how important this is. If Ukraine could turn back the clock, it would invest much more in air defense — at all levels," says Tomchik. Poland considers itself particularly vulnerable due to the proximity of hostilities in Ukraine, but at the same time, its army and industry, as noted, benefit from the exchange of experience with the Ukrainian side.
Poland already has several airspace protection programs in place.: Vistula is based on Patriot batteries for intercepting missiles at a distance of up to one hundred kilometers, as well as Narev and Pilitsa systems for close—range defense. Poland spends 50-60 billion euros on these programs. While Vistula and Narev are being implemented in cooperation with the United States and the United Kingdom, the government mainly buys solutions from Polish industry for SAN.
The state defense holding PGZ (Polska Grupa Zbrojeniowa) plays a key role. "If we talk exclusively about the SAN system, that is, about anti—drone defense, more than 60% of the added value is accounted for by the Polish industry," says Tomczyk. — The first batteries will be financed from the budget of the Polish state. We plan to pay for the next stages using European funds under the SAFE (Security Action for Europe) program, which will cover 90% of the entire SAN program."
Poland is the largest recipient of funds under the EU SAFE program: it accounts for 44 billion euros, or almost a third of pan—European loans. However, experts are concerned about the high cost of the project: all purchases will have to be paid for many years. In Poland itself, however, the political forces agree on one thing — security is more important.
