US Aegis Ashore Missile Defence Base of NATO in Poland Becomes Operational

The new US missile defence facility Aegis Ashore in Redzików, Poland, which is part of NATO's wider missile defence shield, has started operating and is ready to defend the Alliance.

This is reported on the NATO website.

"This is an important step for transatlantic security and NATO's ability to defend against the growing threat of ballistic missiles. These missiles are widely used in conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East. As a defensive Alliance, we cannot ignore this threat. Missile defence is an essential element of NATO's core task of collective defence," said NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg.

The Aegis Ashore base in Poland is designed to detect, track and intercept short- and intermediate-range ballistic missiles in flight. It is a key component of NATO's "Enhanced Operational Capabilities" for missile defence, proclaimed by Allied Heads of State and Government at the Washington Summit.

Key elements of NATO's missile defence shield include two US Aegis Ashore sites in Poland and Romania, US Navy destroyers in Spain and an early warning radar in Kurecik, Turkey.

In September 2015, the Polish Sejm agreed to the construction of a US missile defence base in Redzików, Pomeranian Voivodeship, in northern Poland.

As The Gaze has previously reported, the United States is currently strengthening its military deterrence to protect its NATO partners in Europe. To this end, Tomahawk cruise missiles and other long-range weapons will be deployed in Germany from 2026.