Poland Eyes New Defence Deals With Philippines After Black Hawk Delivery

Poland is pursuing new defence partnerships with the Philippines, a senior foreign ministry official said in Manila, following the completion of Black Hawk helicopter deliveries to the Southeast Asian nation last month.

Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Wladyslaw Bartoszewski, who was in the Philippine capital for annual political consultations, said Poland is investing nearly $50 billion in its defence industry and is positioned to sell military hardware abroad, including to Manila.

He said the potential offerings include reconnaissance and combat drones, radar systems, anti-aircraft missiles and armoured personnel carriers. A Philippine military delegation recently travelled to Poland to assess equipment that Manila could purchase, he added.

The Philippines acquired 32 S-70i Black Hawk helicopters from Polish Sikorsky subsidiary PZL Mielec in a deal worth 32 billion pesos ($509.60 million) in 2022. The Philippine military said the delivery of the final seven helicopters was completed last month.

Separately, Bartoszewski said talks are ongoing between Ukraine and Poland for the transfer of Warsaw's MiG-29 fighter jets in exchange for drone technology from Kyiv. The two sides are discussing whether to refurbish the jets before transferring them to Ukraine, as well as the kind of technology Warsaw would receive in return.

Poland has been one of Ukraine's strongest backers since Russia began its full-scale invasion in 2022, providing military aid and serving as a key logistics hub for Western assistance.