Soldiers hold a Polish national flag during the Great Independence Military Parade in Warsaw, Poland, on Aug. 15, 2018. Polish Army should be modernized and better equipped and the country's defense spending should grow to 2.5 percent of GDP, Polish President Andrzej Duda said on Wednesday during Polish Armed Forces Day celebrations in Warsaw. (Xinhua/Jaap Arriens)
WARSAW, Aug. 15 (Xinhua) -- Polish Army should be modernized and better equipped and the country's defense spending should grow to 2.5 percent of GDP, Polish President Andrzej Duda said on Wednesday during Polish Armed Forces Day celebrations in Warsaw.
Addressing the gathering before a military parade, the president stated that "everything would be done to make the Polish Army better equipped, to implement modernization plans and to increase defense spending."
"I believe that...we should be increasing defense outlays faster than initially planned. If the economic situation makes it possible, the growth of defense spending to 2.5 percent of GDP should be completed by 2024 instead of 2030 as earlier planned," said the president.
According to the president, the Polish army faced an urgent need of modernization and that it was already being modernized, while the new command system was being worked out.
As a part of celebrations, the Great Independence Military Parade was also held in Warsaw, featuring more than 1,000 soldiers, military vehicles, including battle tanks and missile launchers.
