WARSAW, Poland — Polish President Andrzej Duda has ruled out the possibility of supplying newer weapons to Ukraine, including the tanks, self-propelled howitzers, missile launchers and light attack aircraft that his country has ordered from South Korean manufacturers for Poland’s military.
Duda made the announcement on Oct. 25 during his official visit to South Korea where he met with his counterpart, Yoon Suk Yeol.
The South Korean president recently announced his country is considering to provide weapons to Ukraine to support its ongoing combat against Russia’s attack.
Duda was asked whether Poland could also supply some of its South Korea-made weapons to Kyiv, which play a key role in a broad effort to modernize Warsaw’s arsenal.
“There is no scenario under consideration in which we transfer the weapons that we have acquired … with taxpayers’ money, to anyone,” the Polish president said, as quoted by local news agency PAP.
Duda also said Ukrainian leaders had already asked for the weapons directly.
“My answer was unequivocal: There is no such possibility, as long as I’m president, that we give to anyone the weapons that we have bought for billions of dollars … over the past years,” according to the president.
Since Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Poland has established itself as a key ally of its neighbor under attack. Warsaw has supplied tanks, armored vehicles, howitzers, fighter jets and other types of gear to Kyiv, predominantly transferring outdated Soviet-designed equipment.
However, over the past year, the bilateral relationship has turned sour, with contentious issues such as a clash over a Polish ban on Ukrainian grain imports eventually bleeding into defense cooperation.
While Polish weapon deliveries have largely phased out, the country’s centrist government of Prime Minister Donald Tusk continues to support Ukraine, and the two countries signed a security cooperation agreement in July 2024. The deal foresees Polish support for integrating Ukraine’s defense industry with Western partners, and intensifying air-defense cooperation between the two nations in the event of an attack.
Jaroslaw Adamowski is the Poland correspondent for Defense News.