Tomczyk made the remarks while opening the sixth Forum on Innovation in the Polish Armed Forces at the Polish Army Museum in Warsaw.
He highlighted the SAFE programme, saying EU funds were intended to support investment in Poland, including production lines, industrial infrastructure and jobs in the defence sector.
He also referred to the European Commission's Strategic Technologies for Europe Platform (STEP). Polish companies and research-industry consortia will be able to apply for a total of PLN 1 billion (EUR 235 million) to develop critical technologies needed for the security of Poland and the EU.
He said EU funding and NATO investment in a fuel pipeline network in central Europe were key to Poland's security.
He called for more room for creative people and innovation, saying the military had become constrained by procedures and bureaucracy.
He referred to the development of the Borsuk infantry fighting vehicle, which took nine years from concept to implementation. He said the result was one of the best vehicles of its type in the world but added that “those times are over.”
He said Poland should be able to develop and even construct technologies within weeks, using domestic industry, scientists and physicists, and quickly create technologies to counter emerging threats.
He described the removal of regulations governing the purchase of drone and anti-drone systems, with military testing procedures introduced in their place, as a breakthrough. He said no similar solution existed elsewhere in Europe.
Tomczyk said soldiers should be the final link in the country's security system, adding that the state should provide them with the best equipment and ensure they were heard.
(sp)
Source: PAP