Defence Policy
US Congress Approves the Polish JASSM-ER Purchase
Photo. defensie.nl
Deputy PM and Minister of Defence Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz announced that the US Congress approved the sale of the JASSM-ER cruise missiles (and other weapons) to Poland.
“This is very good news for our military. The US Congress approved the sale of weapons for aircraft to Poland: JASSM-ER, AMRAAM, and AIM-9X. This will significantly boost our capabilities of deterrence and defence” - the head of the Polish Ministry of Defence stated, via X.
Bardzo dobra wiadomość dla naszego wojska. Kongres USA zaakceptował sprzedaż Polsce lotniczych środków bojowych: JASSM-ER, AMRAAM oraz AIM-9X. To w znaczący sposób wzmocni nasze zdolności odstraszania i obrony.
— Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz (@KosiniakKamysz) March 28, 2024
The US State Department had approved the sale of 821 AGM-158B JASSM-ERs (with a range of almost 1,000 km), at a maximum price of USD 1.77 bn., 745 AIM-120C-8 AMRAAMs, at a maximum price of up to USD 1.7 bn., and 232 AIM-9X Sidewinder Block II missiles, for USD 219 million - this happened mid-march, during the President Andrzej Duda’s, and PM Donald Tusk’s visit to the White House.
The procured air-to-air missiles can be employed by F-16s and F-35s - also procured by Poland. This is yet another procurement of such munitions, that Poland had been acquiring from the US in the past.
Jake Sullivan, US National Security Advisor, also announced in mid-March that President Joe Biden is to provide Poland with a loan to finance the procurement of US-made armament, in an amount of USD 2 bn. Poland is also to be offered approval for the sale of 96 Apache attack helicopters. The latter procurement has already been formally approved last year, by the US State Department.