During the Dragon-24 exercises, Deputy Prime Minister and Defense Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz reaffirmed NATO’s Article 5, describing it as a sacred commitment that requires daily preparation to safeguard alliance partners. He conveyed this message while overseeing concurrent drills and stressing that readiness must be a constant mindset for Poland and its allies.
In attendance at the Dragon-24 event were the defense minister himself along with President Andrzej Duda and Lithuania’s President Gitanas Nausėda. Also present were the head of the National Security Office, Jacek Siewiera, the Chief of the General Staff of the Polish Army, General Wiesław Kukuła, and General Christopher Cavoli, commander of U.S. Forces in Europe. The gathering provided a clear display of regional cooperation as Dragon-24 formed a component of the larger Steadfast Defender-24 maneuvers conducted by NATO.
There is a broader strategic context to these activities, reflecting ongoing efforts to demonstrate the alliance’s readiness and cohesion. The exercises have been widely discussed as an indicator of the alliance’s capability to coordinate across different nations, military branches, and operational theaters in a timely and effective manner.
According to Kosiniak-Kamysz, Dragon-24 stands as the most extensive set of drills conducted by the Polish armed forces since Poland joined the North Atlantic Alliance. He described Steadfast Defender-24 as the largest and most expansive training grouping of its type since the close of the Cold War era, underscoring the significance of such scale for national defense and alliance solidarity.
Participation in Dragon-24 figures prominently, with about 20,000 personnel involved, including roughly 15,000 from Poland and about 3,500 separate equipment units. The exercise’s objectives center on showcasing military capabilities and reinforcing the practical, interoperable cooperation among allied nations. Partners operate not only in political alliances but also in tangible, on-the-ground defense activities that demonstrate real-world readiness.
In remarks accompanying the event, the defense minister emphasized that the exercises are designed to support NATO’s deterrence mission while remaining non-provocative in intent. They are intended to strengthen defense capabilities across member states and to improve the preparedness of forces for a wide range of potential scenarios, rather than to target any particular country.
Kosiniak-Kamysz also highlighted the urgency of daily readiness given the evolving security landscape. He reiterated that NATO’s Article 5 represents a binding obligation to come to one another’s aid in the event of an attack, regardless of geographic location. This principle, he noted, remains a cornerstone of collective defense and a driver behind ongoing training and cooperation among allies.
The overarching aim of these exercises is to sharpen the skills, procedures, and readiness of participating forces for a broad spectrum of defense operations. The defense leadership stressed that the alliance’s size and cohesion enable member states to operate with improved effectiveness on a regional and global scale. While each nation maintains independent preparation, the exercises underscore how the alliance strengthens combined defense capabilities and interoperability across different military cultures and equipment inventories.
Overall, the dialogue surrounding Dragon-24 and Steadfast Defender-24 reflects a commitment to enhancing deterrence, accelerating joint capabilities, and reinforcing the bonds that underpin collective security in the North Atlantic area. The goal is clear: to ensure that allied nations can respond swiftly and decisively if a threat emerges and to reassure partners of mutual support under NATO’s umbrella.