Poland, Canada seal defense cooperation pact, set to finalize drone deal

KIELCE — Poland and Canada have signed a defense cooperation agreement aimed at enhancing bilateral ties, with a focus on joint exercises, military training and stronger relations between their local defense industries.

Poland’s Minister of National Defence Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz and his Canadian counterpart David J. McGuinty signed the Memorandum of Understanding here on Monday, before the opening of the MSPO trade show organized from Sept. 8-11 — Poland’s largest arms exhibition.

“Canada’s presence as an exhibitor, a country showcasing its capabilities, skills, and companies, but also a country that wants to purchase Polish military equipment, demonstrates how our position on the international stage has changed in recent months and years,” Kosiniak-Kamysz said in a statement.

He noted that Polish soldiers will head to Canada to participate in Arctic drills, adding, “We will learn, cooperate, and exercise together.” 

The lawmaker also cited existing cooperation, chiefly including Canada’s deployment of an estimated 2,000 personnel in Latvia. “The Polish contingent is also present there as one of the leading contingents securing the [NATO] Alliance’s eastern flank,” he shared.

Aside from the training agreement, Kosiniak-Kamysz said that both countries will also finalize a drone deal today. The package reportedly includes a host of platforms produced by WB Group, including FlyeEye mini-drones, Warmate loitering munitions and Gladius strike and reconnaissance aircraft.

The new deal “shows that Poland is moving from a country that purchased defense equipment worldwide to [now being] a producer as well,” according to Kosiniak-Kamysz.

Canada is the lead partner nation of MSPO, represented by nearly 200 local companies across aerospace and space, AI, cybersecurity, and land and maritime systems, per show organizers.

The deepening Canadian-Polish ties follow the two sides’ agreement to leverage the European Union’s €150 billion (174 billion) Security Action for Europe (SAFE) loan mechanism, by way of a Letter of Intent signed in May.

SAFE is designed to increase the production capacity of the European defense industry as the continent attempts a large-scale rearmament process in the face of Russian aggression and tries to lessen its dependence on US weapon systems.