Nawrocki on Thursday appointed Cenckiewicz as head of the National Security Bureau (BBN), the body that supports the head of state on military and strategic matters.
“Active command requires the best collaborators,” Nawrocki told a news conference, adding he was convinced Cenckiewicz served only “the strength and stability of the Republic.”
Cenckiewicz, a decisive figure who oversaw the liquidation of the country’s former contested Military Information Services (WSI) and chaired a commission probing Russian influence, was chosen because “the operational threat from the Russian Federation still endangers Poland,” Nawrocki said.
Generals Andrzej Kowalski and Mirosław Bryś will serve as Cenckiewicz’s deputies.
Kowalski, a veteran of civilian and military intelligence, will create a Breakthrough Technologies Department, while Bryś brings decades of front-line command, including airborne and territorial units.
Nawrocki wants the presidential palace to shape security policy “in military, civil, operational and analytical dimensions."
He pledged clearer rules for generals’ promotions and repeated his campaign goal of building an army of at least 300,000 troops while completing existing defense contracts.
Poland must stay ready “for years, perhaps decades,” he said, asserting that allies defend only those who can defend themselves.
Nawrocki added he had already spoken with US President Donald Trump and NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte and was “not waiting for the inauguration” to assume his commander-in-chief duties.
(jh)
Source: PAP