Attack on Nato's territory will not pay says defence minister

The Polish’s defence minister has said a Nato exercise now underway in Poland demonstrates that an attack on the alliance by Russia “will not pay off”.

Mariusz Blaszczak made the claim while observing Exercise Griffin Shock 23-1, which is the first exercise in the history of the North Atlantic Alliance in which the Multinational Division North East has taken a unit of the United States Army under its command.

More than 3,000 soldiers from five Nato countries and several hundred vehicles are taking part in Griffin Shock 23-1.

"This is proof of our unity, the unity of the North Atlantic Alliance, it is a very strong signal to Russia that it will not pay off to attack the territory of the North Atlantic Alliance, that the cooperation between Polish forces, the forces of the United States and the North Atlantic Alliance is very close," Blaszczak said.

The defence minister added that "Polish pilots will soon start training” on Apache attack helicopters.

Poland plans to purchase 96 of the helicopters as it looks to ramp up its military capabilities to counter the threat posed by Russia.