DiNanno disclosed that the new allocation brings Poland’s total available pool under the FMF program to $20 billion, underscoring the depth of the bilateral defense relationship. “I’d like to take this opportunity to announce today the United States will be making another $4 billion available in the Foreign Military Financing (FMF) program for Poland,” DiNanno stated at the event, adding that “this signifies US commitment to Polish security and highlights Poland as a priority US ally.”
The Łask ceremony marked Poland’s official induction of its first F-35A Joint Strike Fighters into the Air Force, an event attended by President Karol Nawrocki, representatives of the Ministry of National Defense, and Polish Armed Forces command staff. The ceremony opened with a flyover of two F-35As escorted by F-16 aircraft, after which the jets landed and taxied to the ceremony area, where they were received with a traditional water salute.
Poland’s Deputy Prime Minister and Defense Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz used the occasion to reveal plans to significantly expand the country’s F-35 fleet beyond the current order. He disclosed that Poland’s classified Armed Forces Development Program, signed in December and covering defense priorities through 2039, includes funding for two additional F-35 squadrons on top of the 32 aircraft already on order.
“The program includes not only the 32 F-35A aircraft we are accepting into Polish service today, but also two more squadrons” of F-35s, Kosiniak-Kamysz said. Since a Polish squadron consists of 16 aircraft, the addition of two further squadrons would double the existing order to a total of 64 jets, though the minister did not specify when those aircraft might be placed under contract or delivered.
Of the 32 jets currently on order, 14 are set to be fully inducted by the end of this year, with a further 12 arriving in 2026 and deliveries of all 32 aircraft completed by 2029. Officials at the ceremony noted that the original decision to purchase the F-35, taken in 2020, had not been without internal controversy at the time.
The FMF program finances the procurement of a wide range of defense assets, including aircraft, missiles, vehicles, and military training, providing federal financing to support purchases from U.S. defense companies. The mechanism establishes a binding, operational credit facility backed by the U.S. government, from which funds are drawn down directly to pay American suppliers once goods or services have been delivered.
Beneficiary partner countries subsequently repay the funds at preferential, below-market interest rates, making the program a cost-effective pathway for allied nations to modernize their armed forces. Since joining the program in 2023, Poland has drawn on over $15 billion through the mechanism for a range of U.S. arms purchases, including Apache helicopters, Patriot air-defense systems, HIMARS artillery, and Abrams tanks — a portfolio reflecting Warsaw’s sustained and broad-based investment in strengthening its military capabilities.
