Poland becomes top importer of Chinese drone parts. Ukraine receives part of it – media
Poland has become the leading importer of drone parts from China after China imposed a ban on their export to Ukraine and Russia.
As the Polish outlet Dziennik Gazeta Prawna writes, whereas part of this import goes to Ukraine, Polish law enforcement agencies also readily purchase Chinese drone components, Ukrinform reports.
China's ban
In September 2024, China introduced a ban on the export of drones and key components to Ukraine and Russia.
However, deliveries were not suspended, but only changed their route: now they go to Ukraine via Poland.
Poland's purchases
The increase in imports is also the result of heightened interest in drones on the Polish side. Last year, the Polish military purchased a significant share of the FPV drones available on the market.
"We probably bought up the market, because there were still financial resources to purchase 2,000 kits, but there were no further requests (from Polish agencies, – ed.)," said Polish Deputy Minister of National Defence Cezary Tomczyk.
He also emphasized that over the next three years, Poland will spend a total of about 15 billion zlotys (around $4 billion) on drones and systems to counter them.
The Polish military plans to buy 10,000 Warmate kamikaze drones and 1,700 domestically produced FlyEye reconnaissance drones.
For comparison, Ukraine's production capacity will reach 8 million drones by 2026.
The Polish outlet notes that Chinese designs are price-competitive, costing four times less than U.S. or European products.
At the same time, it is noted that Poland could become independent of supplies from China, but this would require more regular orders from the state.
Earlier, it was reported that the United Kingdom plans to open a business centre in Kyiv this year to support defence start-ups and promote increased supplies of military equipment to Ukraine.
As a reminder, on December 26 last year, new customs exemptions for goods for defense and energy came into force
