Poland Won’t Wait for EU’s Stalled Drone Wall, Launches Independent Counter-Drone System After Russian Incursions

Poland plans to build a national anti-drone defense system within months without waiting for the European Union’s stalled “drone wall” initiative, Deputy Defense Minister Cezary Tomczyk announced in a Bloomberg interview today. The decision comes after 19 Russian drones violated Polish airspace in September, forcing NATO to shoot down hostile aircraft for the first time since Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

The move signals Poland’s frustration with EU bureaucratic delays while facing real threats on NATO’s eastern flank. Tomczyk said the ministry will announce investments this month in technology for detecting, jamming, and neutralizing hostile drones as part of a wider air defense program.

Polish Companies to Secure Half of Contracts

Tomczyk didn’t specify the investment amount but emphasized that Polish companies must secure at least half of the contracts.

“We agree with the idea of strengthening the defense of the skies over the entire European Union and are willing to consider external proposals or solutions,” Tomczyk told Bloomberg. “But we give priority to national projects.”

The deputy defense minister added that the EU’s drone wall could “complement” Poland’s system in the future. “If there’re any external tools, we will use them to the fullest,” he said, making clear that Warsaw won’t let Brussels’ timeline dictate its security posture.

Poland plans to finance the counter-drone shield using the EU’s new SAFE defense loan program, which allocated €43.7 billion ($50.8 billion USD) to Poland—the largest share of the €150 billion pool. Given its borders with Russia, Belarus, and Ukraine, Poland received nearly one-third of the total SAFE funding, more than France, Italy, and Spain combined.

Three-Month Timeline for Initial Capabilities

The government wants the first new capabilities operational within three months of the announcements, with the entire anti-drone system completed in two years. This aggressive timeline stands in stark contrast to the EU’s disputed implementation schedule, which ranges from one year (according to EU Defense Commissioner Andrius Kubilius) to three to four years (per German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius).

“A counter-drone weapon must be comprehensive,” Tomczyk explained. “It should consist of various sensors and effectors operating simultaneously, first detecting and identifying objects, and then neutralizing them.”

The new anti-drone initiatives will become “another layer” of Poland’s air defense network, alongside already deployed long- and medium-range systems. All these elements are designed to protect against aircraft, helicopters, drones, and cruise missiles.

September Incursions Exposed NATO Vulnerabilities

The urgency stems directly from the September 9-10 Russian drone incursions that saw approximately 19 drones cross into Polish airspace during attacks on western Ukraine. Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk called it the most concentrated airspace breach in NATO territory since Russia’s 2022 invasion began.

Poland triggered NATO’s Article 4 mechanism—requiring consultations among allies when a member faces significant security threats—and NATO launched Operation Eastern Sentry in response, deploying additional air defense assets from Denmark, France, the UK, and Germany.

The incident exposed a critical economic problem: NATO spent millions firing missiles at drones costing just a few thousand dollars each. One suspected Russian Gerbera drone—built from plywood, foam, and a wooden propeller—costs approximately $10,000 to produce but requires a $1 million air defense missile to intercept.

EU Drone Wall Initiative Stalled by Political Resistance

Poland’s independent path follows months of EU political paralysis over the drone wall concept. The initiative, originally fast-tracked after the September incidents, has been blocked by Germany and France who resist EU Commission coordination and prefer maintaining national control over major defense projects.

At an EU summit in Copenhagen in October, French President Emmanuel Macron dismissed the drone wall concept as “more sophisticated, more complex” than initially suggested. The Commission broadened the original eastern-border concept into a pan-European network to win support from southern and western states who felt excluded, but without consensus from major EU powers, the initiative struggles to secure dedicated funding.

Ryanair CEO Michael O’Leary publicly dismissed the EU’s proposed drone wall as having “no effect whatsoever,” arguing that hostile actors can launch cheap commercial-grade drones from within NATO territory, making perimeter defenses obsolete before they’re operational.

Poland’s Comprehensive Drone Force Expansion

Poland’s counter-drone system is part of a broader military modernization drive that began in late 2024. In December 2024, Poland announced plans to establish a comprehensive unmanned military force by early 2025, encompassing aerial, ground, surface, and underwater unmanned vehicles.

The country has aggressively pursued drone acquisitions across multiple programs:

• A $310 million contract for MQ-9B Sky Guardian drones, making Poland the first force on NATO’s eastern flank to deploy medium-altitude long-endurance systems
• $310 million deal with WB Group for 10,000 Warmate loitering munitions by 2035
• Completion of 24 Turkish Bayraktar TB2 combat drones worth $270 million
• In July, Poland committed 200 million zloty ($54.2 million) to purchase combat and training drones in 2025

Poland has also emerged as Taiwan’s largest drone customer, capturing nearly 60% of Taiwan’s drone exports as European countries pivot away from Chinese defense technology. The shift positions Poland as Europe’s gateway for non-Chinese drone technology as defense contractors worldwide seek alternatives to Chinese supply chains.

U.S. defense-tech company Anduril Industries is exploring strategic production partnerships in Poland, with CEO Brian Schimpf highlighting the country’s robust software and manufacturing sectors during a June 2025 Warsaw briefing.

DroneXL’s Take

Poland’s decision to bypass the EU drone wall isn’t just pragmatic—it’s a damning indictment of Brussels’ inability to move at the speed of modern threats. We’ve been covering the EU drone wall’s evolution since Baltic states first proposed it earlier this year, when Brussels initially rejected their funding request. The September airspace violations changed everything, yet here we are two months later with France and Germany still blocking coordination while Russian drones probe NATO defenses.

The economics alone justify Poland’s urgency. As we reported when NATO launched Operation Eastern Sentry, the alliance can’t sustain spending $1 million per missile to shoot down $10,000 drones indefinitely. Poland understands what many Western defense establishments still don’t: the future of aerial warfare is about overwhelming quantity as much as advanced quality.

What makes Poland’s approach particularly smart is the domestic manufacturing requirement. By mandating Polish companies secure at least half the contracts, Warsaw is building long-term industrial capacity, not just buying off-the-shelf solutions. This aligns perfectly with the comprehensive Drone Force strategy we covered when Poland first announced plans for multi-domain unmanned systems in December 2024.

The timing also validates Poland’s pivot to Taiwanese drone suppliers over Chinese manufacturers. Building counter-drone systems while simultaneously diversifying away from potential adversary supply chains shows strategic coherence that’s often missing in Western defense procurement.

And let’s acknowledge the elephant in the room: Poland is doing what Ukraine has been doing under fire for nearly four years. As we’ve extensively documented, Ukraine consumes 270,000 drones monthly in actual combat operations and has built manufacturing capacity for 4 million drones annually. The EU’s approach has been criticized for limiting cooperation to EU-only initiatives rather than leveraging Ukraine’s battle-tested manufacturing capabilities and NATO structures.

The three-month timeline for initial capabilities versus the EU’s three-to-four-year estimate tells you everything about the difference between countries facing existential threats and those treating defense as just another bureaucratic process. Poland shares a border with Russia and Belarus. It hosted Ukrainian refugees and serves as a primary logistics corridor for Western military aid. Warsaw doesn’t have the luxury of waiting for French and German politicians to resolve their turf wars over who controls EU defense initiatives.

What do you think? Should other NATO frontline states follow Poland’s lead and build independent counter-drone systems rather than waiting for EU consensus? Share your thoughts in the comments below.