Poland to increase military protection of Baltic energy infrastructure
The Polish government has approved draft legislation enabling the Polish military to respond to terrorist attacks against undersea energy infrastructure, including the strategic Baltic Pipe natural gas pipeline.
The proposed regulations envisage the possibility of using the armed forces against terrorist threats to energy infrastructure at sea, including: the Baltic Pipe gas pipeline and others, facilities and installations providing access to ports, offshore wind farms, undersea power and fibre-optic networks.
Baltic Pipe is a Polish-Danish strategic natural gas infrastructure project that allows the transport of gas from the Norwegian shelf in the North Sea to Poland.
Under the draft legislation adopted on Thursday, the defence minister will be authorised to allow the military to sink an enemy ship or floating object posing a terrorist threat.
The government said the solution is intended only for exceptional situations, when other options to respond had been exhausted.
The government also said that a permanent base for coast guard units would be established in the port of Świnoujście (north-western Poland), where an LNG (liquefied natural gas) terminal is located.
The draft legislation must be approved by parliament and signed by the president to become law.
