"It is a great honor for me to see our friend, Canadian Defense Minister David McGuinty, the head of the Ministry of Defense, who is coming to Poland today as a guest of honor at the International Defense Industry Exhibition – a major event, one of the largest defense industry exhibitions in Europe. Canada is a partner of this year's defense fair in Kielce. Canada is our ally. Canada is our friends. We have long-standing ties with Canada, which supported our accession to NATO as one of the first countries to do so. They did so very quickly, and we are very grateful for that. We have also been cooperating for many years, improving our defense capabilities and skills. Our Armed Forces are cooperating both in Latvia, where Canada is the largest country with approximately 2,000 soldiers. The Polish contingent is also present there as one of the leading contingents securing the Alliance's eastern flank," said Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of National Defense Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz.
On September 7, 2026, in Kielce, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of National Defence Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz met with Canadian Minister of National Defence David J. McGuinty. Discussions focused on bilateral military cooperation and cooperation between the defense industries.
"Canada's presence as an exhibitor, a country showcasing its capabilities, skills, and companies, but also a country that wants to purchase Polish military equipment, demonstrates how our position on the international stage has changed in recent months and years. We will conduct joint exercises. Polish soldiers will travel to Canada and participate in exercises in the Arctic. This is important. This is a moment when, in these difficult conditions, Canada, surrounded by three oceans, is a NATO leader in polar capabilities and the ability to operate in these challenging atmospheric conditions. We will learn, cooperate, and exercise together. Our soldiers will participate in joint NATO exercises. Polish-Canadian transatlantic relations are very important to us. Relations within the North Atlantic Alliance and our friendship are demonstrated in joint missions, operations, exercises, and joint purchases."
Deputy Prime Minister W. Kosiniak-Kamysz after the meeting.
During the visit, the heads of the defence ministries signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on bilateral defence cooperation between the Republic of Poland and Canada.
"The agreement signed today strengthens defense relations between Poland and Canada. It is also proof of the best relations in history between Poland and Canada. Polish-Canadian relations have never been so good. The Minister brought with him 250 companies that will be negotiating with our companies, but we are also working on utilizing the SAFE mechanism. Canada was the first non-EU country to join the SAFE mechanism. Poland supported Canada in this process. We were an advocate for this cooperation. I am very pleased. Not everyone succeeded. The United Kingdom was unable to meet some requirements. Canada met these requirements. The agreement we signed, which we will witness tomorrow, on the sale of Polish equipment to Canada, especially drones, shows that Poland is moving from a country that purchased defense equipment worldwide to a producer as well."
Head of the Polish Ministry of National Defense noted after signing the document.
Noah Note: Confirmation on the Polish side of what we've been tracking rhe last few months. We can also confirm there will be multiple drone announcements by Canada this week, this being one. Other will be Thursday is Zelensky comes. Still don't know exactly where it gits in the current enviornment, there isn't a ready project to fill unless we push something really forward, or this is for some specific requirement, such as tied into Latvia. I will make note, I have not been tracking such a requirement.
Beyond that, this agreement also covers joint training opportunities, including as part of NANOOK and potential increased Polish presence at Suffield, Industrial Cooperation, and again future Joint Procurement opportunitjes that align with initatives like SAFE.
It is, either way, nice to see in any case that Canada is exploring beyond the traditional European suppliers in Germany, UK, Sweden, etc to the second tier and medium-sized partners that make uo an increasingly capable and diverse supply pool. Countries like Czechia, Finland, Poland, even the likes of Estonia are becoming more common fixtures of discussions, and are increasingly transitioning to collaborative partners that we can work with.
So I always welcome the diversification nit just of the United States, but opening ourselves up to a diversification of traditional partners in total. Building the Defence Industrial Base means recognition that diversification and incestment cant be drawn solely from our traditional partners. Maximizing our capabilities, and driving the best investments, means expanding our horizons to partners that, frankly, many have been dismissive of over the years.
Our allies across the spectrum, Korea, Australia, Poland, Ukraine, Norway, and so many others are investing not just in themselves, but increasingly abroad in ways that we can capture. It just requires us to hold that conversation and expand our horizons.
Now imagine if we had gone with the South Koreans on the sub purchase and formed a industrial agreement between the 3? KSS-III, K9's and K2 for everyone!