As defense firms from around the globe converge in Poland for the 32nd International Defense Industry Exhibition (MSPO), Polish President Andrzej Duda emphasized that „security” was the key theme of the week. Warsaw announced plans to unveil approximately 2 billion zloty ($520 million USD) in new defense deals during the event.
“We need security, security, and once again security. And this is exactly what this exhibition is for. We need to develop NATO armies so that we can feel safer,” Duda stated on the expo’s opening day earlier this week. “To achieve this, we will build new arms factories, including ammunition factories.”
Duda was joined by other high-ranking Polish officials at the exhibition held in Kielce, located south of Warsaw and about 130 miles from the Ukrainian border. This year’s event is the largest MSPO to date, featuring more than 750 exhibitors from 34 countries. The U.S. had the highest representation among foreign exhibitors, with 53 companies, followed by 34 from the United Kingdom.
Poland has been on a defense purchasing spree in recent years; however, a change in government last November raised concerns about whether large contracts signed by the previous administration would be fully executed. At the show’s opening, Warsaw’s current government underscored their commitment to strengthening Polish security.
“This is a meeting of those who buy and sell. This is the largest defense industry exhibition in the history of Poland. I would like to thank all the companies that enable us to build our economy. These expenditures on arms, which have been the largest in years, place us at the forefront of NATO,” remarked Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of National Defence Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz.
On the first day of MSPO, Poland’s Ministry of National Defence (MND) Armament Agency signed a contract with the U.S. government for the delivery of 31 MIDS JTRS terminals for the medium-range Wisła and short-range Narew anti-aircraft and anti-missile systems, valued at approximately $16 million. Additionally, another contract was finalized for the delivery of 90 Hiab heavy-lift cranes mounted on Jelcz trucks, expected between 2025 and 2028, worth $100 million. The agency also signed a contract for 348 contamination detection systems for Rosomak wheeled armored personnel carriers, with development slated from 2024 to 2026 and delivery between 2027 and 2030, valued at $82 million.
The following day, the armament agency concluded a contract with the Spanish company Indra Sistemas for up to 15 transportable systems intended for military and dual-use air traffic control at air bases across the country. The first eight systems are expected to be delivered in 2028, with an optional extension for an additional seven systems by 2031. The total value of this contract is approximately $290 million.
In addition to their procurement activities at the exhibition, the Polish government is working to showcase Polish defense products to potential foreign buyers by producing „The Polish Defence and Security Equipment Catalogue,” which includes over 200 products from 61 Polish companies, spanning electronics, cybersecurity, armored vehicles, artillery systems, weapon systems, and more.
“We will send the catalogue to all our diplomatic missions; every military attaché and every embassy will be required to present this catalogue,” Kosiniak-Kamysz declared. He also highlighted that “preparing such a catalogue is an example of proactive thinking about the country’s security, which is understood as the ability to meet the material needs of the Armed Forces and to establish a solid economic position.”
