The ceremony took place in Poland’s northern port of Gdynia on Tuesday, state news agency PAP reported.
President Andrzej Duda told the gathering: “We need not explain the importance of fast delivery and modernisation of Poland’s military equipment in the face of the war in Ukraine and Russian aggression.”
He added: “We can all see clearly that only the heroism of soldiers equipped with advanced weapons can stop Russia’s imperial ambitions and brutality.”
Duda told reporters that the South Korean K2 tanks and K9 self-propelled howitzers had been bought as part of a wider effort to expand Poland's armed forces on the basis of a homeland defence law adopted in the spring.
“To stop the foe, the army must possess modern equipment,” the president added.
Meanwhile, Defence Minister Mariusz Błaszczak, who also attended Tuesday’s ceremony in Gdynia, said it was “an important day in the process of strengthening the Polish army.”
Błaszczak, who also serves as a deputy prime minister, said Poland’s armed forces would be stronger "having the modern K2 tanks and K9 howitzers at their disposal."
The defence minister added that the government “won’t stop making the Polish army stronger, making Poland safe.”
Poland has so far agreed to buy a total of 180 K2 tanks from the South Korean arms maker Hyundai Rotem in a deal worth USD 3.37 billion. They are due to be delivered between 2022 and 2025.
Meanwhile, Poland has also committed to buying 212 K9 tracked self-propelled howitzers from South Korea's Hanwha Defense group for USD 2.4 billion, to be delivered by 2026, officials said on Tuesday.
Tuesday is day 286 of Russia’s war on Ukraine.
(pm/gs)
Source: PAP, prezydent.pl
Click on the audio player above for a report by Radio Poland's Agnieszka Łaszczuk.