Poland’s military has purchased new fighting vehicles from Polska Grupa Zbrojeniowa and Huta Stalowa Wola S.A. (HSW) consortium, according to a statement from Polish Deputy Prime Minister and Defense Minister Mariusz Błaszczak.
On Tuesday, the Polish Minister of Defense signed an agreement between the Armament Agency and the local defense consortium to deliver 1400 BORSUK tracked armored vehicles, including 1000 infantry fighting vehicles and 400 supporting vehicles based on the same tracked chassis.
According to Mariusz Blaszczak, the first four Borsuk infantry fighting vehicles will arrive for testing in the Polish army this year.
The Borsuk vehicles from the Polish defense industry are intended to replace the outdated BMP-1 in the Polish Armed Forces.
In 2020, the Polska Grupa Zbrojeniowa company announced the first stage of field trials for the Borsuk infantry fighting vehicle. In July 2022, state tests of the new Polish infantry fighting vehicle created under the Borsuk program began. This is an essential step towards adopting this vehicle. And in the fall of the same year, servicemen of the 15th Separate Mechanized Brigade of the Polish army tested the machine at the training ground.
The Borsuk is based on a modular design that allows it to be easily reconfigured for various mission requirements. It can have various weapons, including a 30mm automatic cannon, a 7.62mm machine gun, and anti-tank missiles. The vehicle also has advanced sensors, communication systems, and defensive measures.
The new infantry fighting vehicle has a crew of three, including the commander, gunner and driver, and can carry up to eight fully equipped infantry soldiers. The vehicle has a top speed of 70 km/h and a range of up to 500 km. It is designed to operate in various terrain and weather conditions.
Due to the increasing threat from Russia and Belarus, the Polish government has decided to undertake a modernization of its Armed Forces. Poland is attempting to completely modernize its fleet of military vehicles by acquiring main battle tanks and self-propelled artillery units from South Korea and producing new domestically-made fighting vehicles. All of these steps are being taken after analyzing the war in Ukraine.