Poland aims to build Europe’s largest army of 500,000 troops by 2030

Polish defence minister Władysław Kosiniak‑Kamysz said the country intends to raise the size of its armed forces to 500,000 personnel – 300,000 career soldiers and 200,000 high‑readiness reservists – making Poland the biggest army in Europe by 2030. He linked the goal to a strategic increase in the presence of U.S. troops on Polish soil, noting that Warsaw is prepared to host more American forces after the Pentagon’s recent plan to withdraw about 5,000 troops from German bases.

Kosiniak‑Kamysz described the current security environment as “pre‑war” and warned that Europe cannot be safe without U.S. troops. He called for defence spending to reach 5% of GDP by the end of the decade, with a 4.7% allocation already planned for 2025, amounting to a record budget of roughly €50 billion – the highest NATO share relative to national GDP. The minister also announced a request to transfer Patriot launcher production from the United States to Europe and voiced support for the NATO 3.0 concept, which seeks a redistribution of defence burdens among allies.