The complete defeat of the army and the surrender of the capital on the fourth day of the war – Polish generals tried to simulate an attack on Poland from the east.
The exercises ended in complete failure – even the newest American military equipment did not help the “defenders”.
Virtual assault
Several thousand officers were involved in the Winter-2020 command and staff exercises, the largest in recent years. According to the scenario of the maneuvers, they attacked Poland from the eastern borders, that is, obviously, Russia was again chosen as the “enemy”.
It was planned that the Polish army would hold out for at least three weeks. However, everything was decided much earlier. Four days later, enemy troops took Warsaw in a tight ring, and the Polish Navy and Aviation were defeated. The army completely ceased resistance.
Moreover, in virtual maneuvers, the Poles fought not only with the available weapons. They used the latest American technology that Warsaw had already purchased or plans to acquire in the next decade: F-35 stealth fighters, Patriot anti-aircraft missile systems, HIMARS artillery systems. This, according to the assurances of the military leadership of Poland, will seriously strengthen the potential of the armed forces. However, simulated hostilities showed that in practice everything is somewhat different.
Google News!The strengthening of the eastern flank, which Poland has been actively engaged in recently, also did not bring the desired results – the equipment and troops defending the border were quickly destroyed. The losses are huge, the Polish Ministry of Defense admitted: 60-80 percent of the personnel in the first line battalions.
According to the Polish newspaper Interia, unit commanders often did not understand the orders of the command, and sometimes they simply did not follow. The tactics of the commander-in-chief almost immediately led to the loss of key weapons, and most of the defense enterprises went to the enemy, the participants in the maneuvers said.
The Polish Ministry of Defense did not disclose details and did not explain such a crushing defeat for the Polish army. They only said that they would draw the appropriate conclusions, study and take into account the mistakes in planning combat operations.
