Defence24 calculated Polish military assistance to Ukraine

7 November, 2024 Polish PT-91 Twardy in service with the Armed Forces of Ukraine, 2024. Photo credits: 117th Separate Mechanized Brigade. Polish journalists have compiled a list of weapons and military equipment that have been transferred to Ukraine as part of military assistance from 2022 to the present day.

The article was published on the Defence24 website. Since February 2022, the Polish government has largely kept the amount of weapons transferred to the warring Ukraine secret. From time to time, only some politicians released some very non-specific information.

The military equipment transferred to Ukraine is also not included in the annual Polish reports submitted to the UN Register of Conventional Arms and in the reports of the Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The latter contain only information on what Polish industry and Polish trade intermediaries transferred to Ukraine as part of trade relations. However, there are enough photos and videos of former Polish weapons on the web that can be analyzed using open data.

With this in mind, Defence24 decided to create its own list of Polish weapons transferred to Ukraine. Based on the available information, it can be concluded that Ukraine received at least:

14 MiG-29 fighter jets;
11 Mi-24 attack helicopters;
14 Leopard 2A4 tanks;
About 30 PT-91 Twardy tanks;
280 T-72M1 and T-72M1R tanks;
50 Rosomak armored personnel carriers with Hitfist-30 turret;
About 400 BWP-1 combat vehicles;
Dzik armored vehicles;
54 155-mm self-propelled howitzers Krab;
30 122-mm self-propelled howitzers 2S1 Gvozdika;
8 Rak 120-mm self-propelled mortars;
4 command vehicles for Rak mortars;
70 mortars of 120 mm caliber;
4 82 mm 2B9M Vasilek automatic mortars;
60 mm LM-60 light mortars;
35 122-mm BM-21 Grad multiple rocket launchers;
Launchers of the S-200 Wega anti-aircraft system;
"Osa-AK/AKM" anti-aircraft missile systems;
Portable anti-aircraft systems Piorun;
ZSU-23-4 "Shilka" self-propelled anti-aircraft systems;
57-mm anti-aircraft guns S-60;
23-mm anti-aircraft guns ZU-23-2;
RPG-76 Komar hand-held anti-tank grenade launchers;
Infantry weapons, such as Grot carbines;
Hand-held revolver grenade launchers;
Missiles for MiG-29 aircraft;
Missiles for S-200, S-125, Osa and Piorun anti-aircraft systems;
122-mm unguided rockets for BM-21 Grad;
Artillery ammunition of 60 mm, 73 mm, 82 mm, 120 mm, 122 mm, 152 mm and 155 mm caliber;
Ammunition for small arms;
Explosives;
Individual infantryman's equipment, food rations, first aid kits;
Other military vehicles and equipment.

A modified Polish T-72M1R in service with the Armed Forces of Ukraine, 2023.

Photo credits: 22nd Separate Mechanized Brigade

The journalists note that this list may be incomplete and has inaccuracies due to the use of open data. A more accurate report will appear after the Polish government discloses the details of the military aid, which may happen in the near future. In addition to the donated equipment and weapons, the publication also prepared a list of property that crossed the Polish-Ukrainian border "on a commercial basis." This data comes from official Polish reports to the UN and publications of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Poland sold to Ukraine in 2022-2023:

60 MT-LB armored personnel carriers;
49 Oncilla armored personnel carriers;
19 armored vehicles SCAM SM T63/Dzik II;
1 BRDM-2;
1 SKOT R-3M armored personnel carrier;
1 Curt Spartan armored vehicle;
36 155-mm Krab self-propelled howitzers (+18 additional in 2024, i.e.

54);
70 122-mm self-propelled howitzers 2C1 Gvozdika;
22 120-mm mortars;
89 82-mm mortars;
4 122-mm BM-21 Grad multiple rocket launchers;
34 Piorun anti-aircraft systems;
39,280 S-8 unguided aircraft missiles.

Polish self-propelled artillery system Krab in service with the Armed Forces of Ukraine, 2024. Photo credits: 26th Airborne Brigade

Defence24 noted that the calculation of the monetary equivalent of the equipment cannot be objective, as the list contains used equipment that is not in high demand on the arms market. "Because how much do old T-72 tanks or Leopard-1 tanks or infantry fighting vehicles cost on the market?

Probably not much, because it would be difficult to find a buyer for them," says Jaroslaw Cieslak, author of the article.

In October, the Polish Sejm unveiled a draft budget for 2025, according to which the cost of purchasing new equipment and weapons is planned at 31.902 billion zlotys (£8.13 billion).

The new equipment, in particular, will compensate for the equipment withdrawn from the army and transferred to Ukraine.