Russian drones have struck the Yahodyn-Dorohusk border crossing several times in recent weeks, bringing attacks linked to the war in Ukraine close to Poland’s frontier. The Lublin region, in eastern Poland, directly borders Ukraine’s Volyn and Lviv regions.
Against that backdrop, Poland’s defence minister, Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz, said on Monday, 5 October that the country would deploy one Patriot air-defence battery in the Lublin region near the Ukrainian border.
The battery is part of a broader expansion of Poland’s military presence in its eastern regions, encompassing larger units, drone capabilities and aviation infrastructure. Warsaw regards those regions as particularly exposed to threats associated with Russia’s war against Ukraine.
The Lublin Voivodeship is set to host forces and facilities across several towns. Units from the 18th Mechanized Division will be developed there, while a military unit in Biłgoraj is planned to include a battalion from the brigade and an air-defence unit.
Łuków is to become the home of a brigade focused on unmanned systems. Poland has also established a new 18th Motorized Brigade, headquartered in the Opole Lubelskie and Poniatowa districts.
The plans include stationing M1A2 SEPv3 Abrams tanks in Kraśnik for units of the 18th Mechanized Division. Kosiniak-Kamysz also confirmed plans to reinforce the division.
Aviation facilities are due to expand alongside the ground forces. The Air Force University in Dęblin will be developed, as will a helicopter base at Świdnik airport.
Poland plans to establish a base for AH-64E Apache attack helicopters near Lublin Airport in Świdnik, with land arrangements expected to be finalised by the end of 2026. Świdnik is one of three planned locations for Poland’s fleet of 96 Apache helicopters.
As of October 2026, the Polish Army operates two Patriot batteries under the first phase of the Wisła air-defence programme. It has ordered six further batteries for delivery in 2027–2029.
The military construction is being accompanied by work on the legal framework for a more dangerous security environment. Poland is preparing a bill on a so-called ‘pre-war state’, setting operational rules for circumstances in which the country is not formally at war and the threat level is substantially higher than in peacetime.
General Roman Polko has called for a legal definition of a state of ‘war-not war’. “we definitely need to define what we mean by this state and what limitations will be lifted in connection with this so that the military can act effectively,” he said.
Prime Minister Donald Tusk has warned of difficult weeks and months as Russia escalates its aggression against Ukraine, saying Russian attacks were increasingly taking place near Poland’s border.
Speaking in parliament, Tusk described a “real risk that drones or other types of projectiles will [enter the territory] of one or several countries on the [NATO] eastern flank and even cause destruction.”
He cited intelligence suggesting Russia could present an entry of drones or projectiles into NATO territory as an accident, even if it had been deliberate, in an effort to weaken the alliance’s willingness to respond jointly.
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