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Warsaw eyes more military protection for Baltic energy infrastructure

05.05.2023 15:15
The Polish government has approved draft legislation aiming to enable the country's military to respond to terrorist attacks against the key Baltic Pipe gas pipeline and other offshore energy infrastructure.
Photo:
Photo:PAP/Marcin Bielecki

Under the legislation, the Polish military would “in exceptional situations” be allowed to respond to terrorist threats to key facilities by sinking an enemy vessel or aircraft, the Polish Prime Minister’s Office said on Thursday.

The draft law aims to protect Poland’s energy infrastructure at sea, including the Baltic Pipe and other pipelines, facilities and installations providing access to ports, offshore wind farms, as well as undersea power and fiber optic networksa grid Warsaw has focused on developing since it was cut off from Russian gas supplies a year ago.

The draft also includes a plan to establish a new, permanent Border Guard base in the northwestern port of Świnoujście, which hosts an LNG terminal that Poland uses to import supplies from the United States.

On Wednesday, NATO’s intelligence chief warned that Russia could try to sabotage undersea cables to punish Ukraine’s Western allies.

(jh/gs)

Source: PAP