Polish involvement in the Iraq War
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Polish involvement in the Iraq War | |||||||
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Part of the Iraq War | |||||||
A Polish Army soldier patrol leader debriefs his team after completing an afternoon patrol around the perimeter of Camp Babylon, Iraq. | |||||||
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Belligerents | |||||||
Poland |
Ba'athist Iraq (2003) Iraqi insurgents | ||||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||||
Strength | |||||||
2,500 (2005) | |||||||
Casualties and losses | |||||||
28 killedAround 150 wounded |
On March 17, 2003, then
Forces committed
The original Polish contingent contained:
- 70 soldiers from the JW GromSOF unit, already deployed to the region, before March 2003. These were joined by another 56 men, just before the invasion.
- The logistic support ship 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, 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 by Saddam Hussein, this operation aimed to prevent similar acts that would have led to pollution of the region and loss of infrastructure.[1]
Polish special forces performed the operation of securing the port of Umm Qasr.
International relations
In 2003, controversy erupted between Poland and
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"[2] and was criticized for that by many fellow politicians and Polish popular opinion.
See also
References
- ^ Crawley, James W. (2003-06-23). "SEALs give glimpse of missions in Iraq". Sign on San Diego. Retrieved 2009-06-17.
- ^ "Poland seeks Iraq oil stake". BBC News. 2003-07-03. Retrieved 2007-10-15.