Poland to step up ammo production says PM

Poland will increase its ammunition production capacity to make up for the shortfall caused by donations to Ukraine, Mateusz Morawiecki, the prime minister, has said.

He added that Poland will also enlarge its ammunition reserves.

Morawiecki, defence minister Mariusz Błaszczak, and the EU internal market commissioner, Thierry Breton, visited Zaklady Metalowe Dezamet, an ammunition manufacturer, in the south-eastern Polish town of Nowa Dęba on Monday.

At a press conference, Morawiecki said that Europe, and perhaps even Nato, lack ammunition.

"Today we want to replenish our stockpiles, that's our number one goal," he said, adding that Poland also wants to expand its ammunition inventory.

"Secondly, we want our ammunition producers - Dezamet, but also other plants that we'll be setting up or increasing their capacity - to have the possibility to produce ammunition to a level that Poland needs," Morawiecki said.

The prime minister went on to say that Russia fires between 20,000 and 50,000 shells every day, while Ukraine responds with 2,000 to 6,000 shells, but ones that are "fired with better precision".

"So (the goal is - PAP)) to replenish stocks and build such capacity for Poland to be extra safe, but at the same time so that we can be an ammunition supplier for others," Morawiecki continued.

"We have excellent competence in producing weapons and ammunition and I'm pleased that, in agreement with Commissioner Thierry Breton, we'll be able to multiply production using European money," he said.

Poland will get hundreds of millions of euros for weapons production under the EU's peace fund, Morawiecki said earlier in the day.