Europe

Poland sacks Nato-EU battlegroup chief over counter-intelligence issue

Warsaw investigates ‘personal security clearance’ of Jaroslaw Gromadzinski after his dismissal as commander of Eurocorps

Nato soldiers from the US, Romania and Croatia take part in a military parade in Warsaw on August 15th last, Polish Army Day. Photograph: Wojtek Radwanski/AFP via Getty Images
Nato soldiers from the US, Romania and Croatia take part in a military parade in Warsaw on August 15th last, Polish Army Day. Photograph: Wojtek Radwanski/AFP via Getty Images
Raphael Minder in Warsaw and Henry Foy in Brussels
Thu Mar 28 2024 - 17:16

The Polish commander of Eurocorps, a multinational Nato-EU battlegroup based in France, has been dismissed and recalled to Warsaw to face a counter-intelligence investigation.

The Polish defence ministry said the inquiry was to look at “the personal security clearance” of Lieut Gen Jaroslaw Gromadzinski and gather new information about him. Warsaw said it notified its allies “in advance” and the dismissal caused no particular concern.

“There is no concern between us and the allies,” Polish defence minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz told Polish news channel TVN24 on Thursday. He described the dismissal as a “serious matter”, but insisted that the investigation was so far only “a process of clarification” without detailing what had prompted it.

Poland has appointed Lieut Gen Piotr Blazeusz as a replacement chief for Eurocorps. “Everything is being done in accordance with procedures,” the minister said.

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But a person with knowledge of the decision to remove Lieut Gen Gromadzinski said it came as “a great surprise” to senior Eurocorps officials. Warsaw provided no further information about the “sensitive issue” the counter-intelligence investigation was looking into, the person added.

The Polish defence ministry listed different laws and reasons under which such a counter-intelligence inquiry can be launched. One of them is “the protection of classified information”. Lieut Gen Gromadzinski denied any wrongdoing.

“I believe that the inspection procedure initiated by the military counter-intelligence service will end positively for me,” Lieut Gen Gromadzinski wrote on the social media platform X. In his 34 years in the military, “I have always represented the Polish soldier’s uniform with dignity”, he added.

He was assigned last June to lead Eurocorps, which is headquartered in Strasbourg and was set up in 1992 as a Franco-German battlegroup that has since also incorporated military from other countries, including Poland. The Polish commander was recently also involved in overseeing the training of Ukrainian soldiers in Germany.

Before leading Eurocorps, Lieut Gen Gromadzinski was the commander of Polish troops in Iraq and Syria. He also served within the general staff of the Polish armed forces.

“It is an internal decision of Poland as a Eurocorps framework nation,” the battlegroup said. “Eurocorps is stable and will continue to fulfil its missions towards Nato and EU.”

The dismissal comes amid heightened security concerns in Warsaw linked to Russia’s war in Ukraine, including recent breaches of the Polish airspace by Russian missiles.

Belarus president Alexander Lukashenko this week threatened Poland and other Nato countries bordering Russia and Belarus by asking his military commanders how they were preparing for a potential conflict in the region. – Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2024