On March 17, 2003, then Polish President

Aleksander Kwaśniewski Aleksander Kwaśniewski (; born 15 November 1954) is a Polish politician and journalist. He served the maximum two terms as the president of Poland from 1995 to 2005. His tenure as President was marked by modernization of Poland, rapid economi ...

announced that

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

would send about 2,000 troops to the

Persian Gulf The Persian Gulf, sometimes called the Arabian Gulf, is a Mediterranean seas, mediterranean sea in West Asia. The body of water is an extension of the Arabian Sea and the larger Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula.Un ...

to take part in the 2003 invasion of Iraq. Polish soldiers had been present in the region since July 2002 and combat was first confirmed on March 24. These formed the fourth of the larger military contributions to the forces arrayed against

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

(with the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

, Great Britain and

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

Forces committed

The original Polish contingent contained: * 70 soldiers from the JW Grom SOF unit, already deployed to the region, before March 2003. These were joined by another 56 men, just before the invasion. * The logistic support ship ORP ''Kontradmirał Xawery Czernicki'' which served as a base for special operations, included 50+ crew as well as the navy SOF unit '' JW Formoza''. * 74 chemical-contamination personnel from 4 Brodnicki Pułk Chemiczny (4. Chemical Warfare Regiment from Brodnica). * Another 53 men strong chemical-contamination contingent was ready to be sent to

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

, but because of the quick victory it was stopped one day before departure. In April 2005, Poland had 2,500 troops deployed in Iraq, and was also commanding a number of other coalition troops within the Polish-led Multinational Division Central-South.

Operations by Polish forces

Polish commandos took part in security operations on Iraqi oil platforms. Fearing a repeat of the destruction of Iraqi oil wells in the

Gulf War , combatant2 = , commander1 = , commander2 = , strength1 = Over 950,000 soldiers3,113 tanks1,800 aircraft2,200 artillery systems , page = https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-PEMD-96- ...

Saddam Hussein Saddam Hussein (28 April 1937 – 30 December 2006) was an Iraqi politician and revolutionary who served as the fifth president of Iraq from 1979 until Saddam Hussein statue destruction, his overthrow in 2003 during the 2003 invasion of Ira ...

, this operation aimed to prevent similar acts that would have led to pollution of the region and loss of infrastructure. Polish special forces performed the operation of securing the port of Umm Qasr.

International relations

In 2003, controversy erupted between Poland and

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

when Polish forces found French

Roland Roland (; ; or ''Rotholandus''; or ''Rolando''; died 15 August 778) was a Frankish military leader under Charlemagne who became one of the principal figures in the literary cycle known as the Matter of France. The historical Roland was mil ...

surface-to-air missiles that the international press reported that Polish officers claimed had been manufactured in 2003. France pointed out that the latest Roland missiles were manufactured in the early 1990s and thus the manufacturing date was necessarily an error (it turned out it was probably the expiry date that was indicated), and affirmed that it had never sold weapons to Iraq in violation of the embargo. Investigations by the Polish authorities came to the conclusion that the persons responsible for the scandal were low level commanders; Wojskowe Służby Informacyjne, the Polish Army's intelligence service, had not verified their claims before they were leaked to the press. The Foreign Minister of Poland, Włodzimierz Cimoszewicz, stated in July 2003, "We have never hidden our desire for Polish oil companies to finally have access to sources of commodities" and was criticized for that by many fellow politicians and Polish popular opinion.

References

External links

President of Poland's decision to commit troops to Iraq

Multinational Division Central-South homepage

U.S. Foreign Economic and Military Aid by Recipient Country: 2000 to 2003
{{Iraq War

Iraq War The Iraq War (), also referred to as the Second Gulf War, was a prolonged conflict in Iraq lasting from 2003 to 2011. It began with 2003 invasion of Iraq, the invasion by a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition, which ...

History of Poland (1989–present)

Forces committed

Operations by Polish forces

International relations

See also

References

External links