US Conducts Joint Exercises with Poland, Deploys Patriot Missile Batteries

A Patriot missile defence battery has been deployed by the U.S. Army Europe near Warsaw. It is reportedly part of joint exercises with Poland, meant to comfort the NATO member that is already spooked by the unceasing conflict in Ukraine.

The week-long exercise was to "reassure allies, demonstrate freedom of movement and deter regional aggression on the eastern flank of NATO," the U.S. Army Europe had said earlier. To prove its point, two U.S. soldiers on Saturday demonstrated the procedure of emplacement of a Patriot launching station of 16 missiles at a test range in Sochaczew near Warsaw.

Polish Defence Minister Tomasz Siemoniak, in a joint press briefing with the U.S. ambassador to Poland Stephen Mull, said the two countries have been allies for the last 16 years. He noted that in times of need or whenever needed, “the United States have firmly stood by our side."

The weeklong exercise meant to enable the U.S. Army show to Poland and NATO allies its capacity to deploy Patriot air and missile defence systems rapidly within NATO territory amid a Russia threat. About 100 U.S. troops and 30 vehicles from the 5th Battalion of the 7th Air Defense Regiment arrived in Sochaczew from Germany to train Polish troops. A NATO member since 1999, Poland however does not have its own system against ballistic missiles. The U.S. Patriot missile battery was manufactured by Raytheon.

Earlier, reports circulated that Russia had deployed its Iskander ballistic missiles in its Kaliningrad exclave as part of exercises earlier last week. The counter-deployment of the U.S. Patriot missile defence battery was a reaction to this.

Poland is expected to finalise within the next few weeks the supplier for its medium-range missile defence system. Raytheon is on the short-list, which also includes a consortium of France's Thales and European group MBDA. If plans push through, Poland will be covered with a permanent U.S. air defence system in 2018.

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