Today, March 29, Poland has finally suspended its participation in the Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe.
This is reported by RBC-Ukraine with reference to the office of the President of Poland Andrzej Duda.
Why was the agreement needed
The explanatory note states that the purpose of the agreement was to reduce existing conventional offensive weapons that NATO member states and former Warsaw Pact countries had at their disposal at the time of its conclusion, and then maintaining them at a given level.
The obligations concern five categories of conventional armed forces : combat tanks, combat armored vehicles, artillery, combat aircraft and attack helicopters.
The Treaty defines the maximum permissible ceiling of the number of weapons possessed by the participating states.
In order to verify compliance with the provisions of the Treaty the participating states were obliged to report and exchange information about the state of their weapons.
Why did Poland decide to suspend participation
In the justification it was stated that the actions of the Russian Federation are aimed at destabilizing peace and security in Europe, primarily with its full-scale aggression against Ukraine.
Therefore, the suspension of the application of the treaty is necessary for reasons of security and defense, as well as the interests of the foreign policy of the Republic of Poland.
“The suspension of the Treaty will mean that the Republic Poland, like other states that decided to do so, formally remaining a party to this agreement, will not be obliged to comply with its provisions,” the text says.
The suspension should be carried out for an indefinite period. The law enters into force the day after its publication.