Poland-DEFENSE AND THE NATIONAL ECONOMY

Sokol helicopter, manufactured at Swidnik Transport Factory.
Courtesy Polish Information Agency, Warsaw

In the early 1990s, military planners recognized the crucial connection between the health of the national economy and the degree to which the Polish Army could be transformed into a lean and efficient defensive force. Given a stringent budget, key decisions were needed in arms procurement policy, particularly regarding foreign versus domestic manufacture and the degree of technological sophistication. The practicality and advisability of converting the Polish arms industry to civilian manufacture and budgetary allocations to defense were also major concerns.

Data as of October 1992