US approves $780m sale of Javelin missiles to Poland as Russia threat grows

As the important NATO front-line nation strengthens its defenses as the threat of Russian incursions grows, the US State Department has announced it has approved the sale of Javelin Missile Systems and related logistical equipment to Poland for an estimated $ 780 million.

The US Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) stated in a statement on Thursday that the Polish government had requested to purchase 2, 506 FGM-148F Javelin missiles and 253 Javelin Lightweight Command Launch Units.

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A portable, shoulder-fired missile system known as a javelin is used to attack tanks, lighter-armed vehicles, bunkers, and low-flying aircraft.

Poland will also receive non-MDE (Major Defense Equipment), such as missile simulation rounds, battery coolant units, toolkits, spare parts support, training, and technical assistance from the US government and contractor.

The US government claimed to have already informed Congress of the potential sale for approval.

By enhancing the security of a NATO Ally, which contributes to Europe’s political and economic stability, the DSCA said in a statement.

By upgrading Poland’s existing command launch units and increasing its defense inventory, the proposed sale will strengthen its ability to meet NATO requirements and meet current and future threats, it added.

Polish Defense Minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz also stated on Thursday that Poland would sign a cooperation agreement with Kyiv to teach Polish soldiers and engineers how to use drones.

More than 20 drones were shot down by Polish and NATO forces in violation of Ukrainian airspace during a Russian airstrike on neighboring Ukraine a week prior to the announcement.

For the first time since the September 10 incident, Polish and NATO forces have reportedly engaged in combat, with Ukraine claiming that Moscow is conducting drone strikes to test its military might.

Russia claimed that its forces were attacking Ukraine at the time of the aerial incursion but had not intended to hit Polish targets.

In what Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen characterized as a “paradigm shift in Danish defence policy,” Denmark also announced this week that it would purchase long-range, high-precision weapons for the first time to deter Russia.

Even if there is no imminent threat of an attack, Frederiksen asserted that Russia will still be a threat to Denmark for “years to come.”

The defense forces can target targets at long range with these weapons, she said, and use them to neutralize enemy missile threats, she added.