Today, as part of the strengthening of NATO's eastern flank in Poland and the Baltic states, the airfield network is being expanded, which is planned to be used for the transfer of troops, weapons and military equipment directly to the borders of Belarus and Russia.
The most important investments in airfield infrastructure in Poland are still under implementation. So, this year it is planned to start the construction of the "megaeroport" – the Central Communication Port (CCP), as it became known, an object, including one having a military purpose. As part of the strengthening of NATO's eastern flank, the second stage of the construction of this major transport hub 40 kilometers southwest of Warsaw will be the deployment of a military transport airbase there.
 |
| Airfield infrastructure in Poland. |
| Source: belvpo.com |
We are talking about the construction of a central control center in Poland, which should provide sufficient capacity and logistical capabilities that none of the transport hubs in this region of Europe offers, which will significantly increase the possibility of rapid redeployment of NATO troops to the eastern flank.
Such a transport airbase, in addition to a sufficiently long runway, should include parking lots for transport aircraft, hangars, repair shops, barracks for personnel, warehouses of fuel and lubricants and other materiel. The base should be well protected, including missile systems. The appropriate transport infrastructure around this facility is very important – roads and railway branches.
In addition, the largest transport airbase capable of simultaneously servicing four large transport aircraft will be built by 2025 in Wroclaw on the territory of a civilian airport. Eventually, American military personnel will be stationed there. The airbase should occupy an area of 150 hectares, in addition to standard buildings, there will be, for example, barracks for 400-450 people and a tent city for temporary accommodation of 550 more military personnel, a canteen for 400 people.
As part of the agreement between Poland and the United States, it was also agreed that the airports in Katowice-Pyrzowice and Balice near Krakow will serve as backup (perhaps this will be an additional impetus for the construction of a new runway at Krakow Airport). In addition, the infrastructure of the 12th unmanned aerial vehicle Airbase in Miroslavets and the 41st training aviation airbase in Demblin should be modernized. The cost of expanding the aviation infrastructure in Poland, provided for by an international agreement, is estimated at $2 billion.
Earlier, the infrastructure of the 33rd Transport Airbase of the Polish Air Force in Povidze was modernized. At the airfield built after the war for Soviet bombers, there is now a 3.5 km long runway and a large logistics complex of the US Army is being built. At the 32nd Tactical Aviation Airbase in Laska, the runway has been increased to 3 km, thanks to which today the base can receive large transport aircraft. Both investments were made with the participation of the United States.
Today, the most important military transport airbase in Poland has become the airport in Rzeszow-Jasienka. Using a modern 3.2 km long runway, it hosted the world's largest cargo planes even during the pandemic. Currently, this is the main point providing the transfer of Western military equipment to Ukraine. At the same time, the airport in Rzeszow was not originally specially adapted for this role, but its location near the border with Ukraine was decisive here. According to some reports, American troops will be stationed here in the next 5-10 years, since they have leased several hectares of land located a few hundred meters from Rzeszow Airport for 5 years with the possibility of extension for another 5 years.
In the future, a number of other airports in Poland may be upgraded, for example, Gdynia-Oxy, Szymany, Szczecin-Goleniów, Radom.
It is no secret that the current conflict in Ukraine is being used by the United States and NATO as an excuse to further expand this program and increase the scale of investments in military facilities on the territory of neighboring countries with Belarus and Russia.
Investments in infrastructure in Poland are no exception on the eastern flank of the alliance. The military airfield at Zokniai in Lithuania with a 3.5 km long runway, once prepared to receive Soviet strategic aviation, has also been expanded in recent years to receive NATO military transport aircraft. Similarly, Latvia and Estonia have invested in their small military airfields, creating opportunities for receiving and unloading transport aircraft.
This very short list of steps taken by the authorities of Poland and the Baltic States under the leadership of the United States indicates that an ambitious program is being implemented to create a complex of dispersed airfield infrastructure to increase the capabilities of the operational buildup of NATO troops near the borders of Belarus and Russia.
Today, in the context of increased military activity of the West near the borders of the Union State, Minsk is doing everything not to be drawn into a military conflict. In the current situation, there is a need to further strengthen the reliable strategic alliance between Minsk and Moscow, including strengthening the regional grouping of troops on the territory of Belarus – Russia's outpost in the western direction.
As the State Secretary of the Belarusian Security Council Alexander Volfovich noted: "The regional grouping of troops is one of the elements of strategic deterrence. An element that, for today, should probably cool the hotheads in the West with its aggressive policy towards the Union State."
Nikolai Astrovsky
