Gawkowski made the comments during a visit to the Cyber Defence Forces Component Command in Legionowo near Warsaw, where he attended a briefing on cybersecurity investment and cyberspace threats.
Poland is the most targeted country in the European Union in cyberspace, Gawkowski said, citing more than 270,000 incidents recorded last year.
Despite the high number of attacks, Poland is also one of the safest countries in cyberspace because 99 percent of attacks are repelled, he said.
'We are at cyberwar with Russia, and we are winning it'
Gawkowski said the military's cybersecurity efforts had helped ensure that essential services, including water, gas and electricity, remained available.
"We are at cyberwar with Russia, and we are winning it" because the Cyber Defence Forces work around the clock with Poland's civilian security services, Gawkowski said.
He said Poland was spending more on cybersecurity than ever before, including PLN 4 billion (EUR 930,000, USD 1.1 billion) in 2024, another PLN 4 billion in 2025 and more than PLN 5 billion this year, in addition to investment programmes.
Gawkowski said the Cyber Defence Forces could receive additional financing from a special cybersecurity fund managed by his ministry.
The money will help provide additional staffing and improve pay for military personnel and employees working in cyber units, he said.
"There is no good cyber defence without money for the people who work in it," Gawkowski said.
The Cyber Defence Forces' commander, Gen. Mariusz Chmielewski, said cybersecurity was "a team effort" and described Poland's model of combining information technology, cybersecurity and cryptology capabilities as a national milestone.
Photo: PAP/Leszek Szymański
The Cyber Defence Forces have 6,500 soldiers and civilian employees, as well as about 3,000 reserve volunteers from the Cyber Legion, a platform bringing together military, academic and civilian cybersecurity communities, Chmielewski said.
Chmielewski also highlighted the growing military use of civilian technologies, citing developments in Ukraine involving drones, autonomous systems and swarms of drones.
He said Poland was investing in dual-use technologies, including intelligent sensor networks, command-and-control systems and battlefield drone capabilities.
"Accelerating innovation cycles is a key factor in victory on the battlefield," Chmielewski said.
The Cyber Defence Forces are a specialised component of Poland's armed forces responsible for cybersecurity as a separate operational domain. They have capabilities spanning defensive, intelligence and offensive operations.
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Source: IAR/PAP