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I recently asked a Polish journalist friend his ideas regarding the ongoing crisis in Ukraine. He gave me a five point answer: (1) The Ukrainians are fighting against Russia’s corrupt version of so-called capitalism; (2) Russia is trying to portray Ukraine as a non-state; (3) Putin is rebuilding the former Soviet Union’s empire, extending Moscow’s influence over specific economic sectors; (4) Moscow’s ultimate goal is to completely push the United States out of Europe, using a new anti-American ideology; (5) Meanwhile, Moscow relies heavily on the West’s readiness to compromise on everything and anything to preserve their access to Russian...

Poland's Parliament has adopted Tuesday a declaration expressing support for the European integration of Ukraine and Ukrainians who have taken to the streets after the scrapping of an Association Agreement with the EU. In the resolution, the Sejm vows "full solidarity with the citizens of Ukraine, who with great determination show the world their desire to ensure their country's full membership in the EU." At the same time, Polish MPs have expressed "deep concern" about the exacebation of tension in Ukrainian political and social life. They called Ukrainian authorities to respect the principles of democracy, rule of law and the...

Poland will breathe a little easier because at the very least, American troops in Poland will be an effective trip wire and hedge against Russia making a move to reclaim the former Warsaw Pact country. Washington Post: Poland and the United States will announce next week the deployment of U.S. ground forces to Poland as part of an expansion of NATO presence in Central and Eastern Europe in response to events in Ukraine. That was the word from Poland’s defense minister, Tomasz Siemoniak, who visited The Post Friday after meeting with Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel at the Pentagon on Thursday....

Poland and the United States will announce next week the deployment of U.S. ground forces to Poland as part of an expansion of NATO presence in Central and Eastern Europe in response to events in Ukraine. That was the word from Poland’s defense minister, Tomasz Siemoniak, who visited The Post Friday after meeting with Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel at the Pentagon on Thursday. Siemoniak said the decision has been made on a political level and that military planners are working out details. There will also be intensified cooperation in air defense, special forces, cyberdefense and other areas. Poland will play...

WARSAW, Poland (AP) - Survivors marked 65 years yesterday since Soviet occupiers began sending Poles to Siberian labour camps after signing a pact with Nazi Germany to divide up Poland. Under Soviet dictator Josef Stalin, at least 320,000 Poles from what is now Belarus, Ukraine and Lithuania were deported between February 1940 and June 1941. Historians estimate that some 20 to 30 per cent perished from forced labour in subfreezing temperatures, disease and starvation. A wreath-laying ceremony at a monument to the deportees marked the anniversary of the first transport of Poles on February 10, 1940, and survivors talked about...

Did Putin Blow Up the Whole Polish Government in 2010? A Second Look. A plane crash at Smolensk in Russia four years ago wiped out the Warsaw leadership. It used to be seen as an accident. Now, after Putin’s games in Ukraine, people aren’t so sure. Four years ago this week, Polish President Lech Kaczynski was killed in a plane crash near the Katyn Forest in Russia where he was flying to honor the 22,000 Polish officers, lawyers, priests and professors slaughtered there by the Soviets 70 years before. Ninety-five other military, political and public figures including his wife died...

A senior Christian Democrat criticized German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier's stance on Ukraine and Russia in a signal of a possible rift appearing within Chancellor Angela Merkel's right-left coalition over relations with Moscow. Conservative leader Merkel and Steinmeier, who is a senior member of the Social Democrats (SPD), have been at pains to stress how closely they are coordinating on policy since the Ukraine crisis began, despite the traditionally warmer ties to Moscow maintained by the leftist SPD.

See the movie of the Polish pilots from the 22 Tactical Air Base (22 BLT) in Malbork flying Mig 29 Fulcrum. Really cool in my opinion. When I see such movies - I wish I was a pilot :-) Fulcrum Drivers 22BLT

Four years ago, Poland was set to become the staging ground for advanced U.S. ballistic missile interceptors. But after the plan collapsed—and seeing defense budgets in the rest of Europe on the decline—Polish political leaders decided they needed their military to fend for itself. And now with an aggressive Russia bearing down on Ukraine, Warsaw is getting even more worried—and prepared.

Poland asked Nato to station 10,000 troops on its territory on Tuesday as a visible demonstration of the Alliance's resolve to defend all its members after Russia's seizure of Crimea. Nato foreign ministers met in Brussels to consider requests for soldiers to be deployed in Poland and the Baltic States, all of which share borders with Russia. Nato generals and admirals have been ordered to devise ways to better protect alliance members that feel threatened by Russia, and "all practical civilian and military cooperation" with Russia. President Vladimir Putin has massed about 40,000 troops near Ukraine's eastern frontier, giving himself...

A Polish priest has warned parents to be on their guard against Lego, warning the plastic blocks are a tool of Satan and can "destroy" children's souls. In a presentation aimed at parents, Father Slawomir Kostrzewa said the popular Danish toy company had taken a lurch to the dark side with its series of Monster Fighters and Zombie mini-figures, and that they "were about darkness and the world of death". "Friendly fellows have been replaced by dark monsters," he explained. "These toys can have a negative effect on children. They can destroy their souls and lead them to the dark...

Public backs continued NATO commitment (Poll) by Peter Moore Tue April 1, 2014 6:55 a.m. PDT Most Americans still back the US's defense commitment to other members of NATO, though doubts creep in when asked about specific countries The Russian annexation of Crimea, which is still a part of Ukraine in the eyes of the international community, has raised fears in other former Soviet states that they may soon lose parts of their territory. Most of these countries don't have an alliance with the United States, but three - Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia - are members of NATO. As...

Why Poland Loves Ukraine ... For Now MARCH 28, 2014 Slawomir Sierakowski Eastern Europe, which beginning with Poland is celebrating its 25th anniversary of freedom from Communism, has suddenly awakened from a beautiful dream about the end of history. No less an authority than Adam Michnik, the legendary Polish anti-Communist dissident, recently announced that 2014 marks the end of the best period in Poland’s history in three centuries. We are entering uncertain times: In contrast to Eastern Europe’s foray into independence after World War I, no close intraregional alliances were formed in the aftermath of 1989; rather, each country placed...

Is the Republican Party's Middle East policy up for bid? For four days ending Sunday, a quartet of presidential hopefuls trooped to Las Vegas to attend the annual gathering of the Republican Jewish Coalition. Impresario: Sheldon Adelson, the Vegas-Macau casino mogul whose fortune is estimated at $39 billion -- 8th richest man on the planet -- and who dumped $92 million into the election of 2012. Adelson kept Newt Gingrich alive with a $15 million infusion of ad money, gutting Romney, and then sank $30 million into Mitt's campaign. This time Sheldon wants to buy himself a winner. Ari Fleischer,...

I don’t think Barack Obama was born in Kenya. Yes, his father was born in Kenya, and his brother was born in Kenya. But that doesn’t mean he himself was born in Kenya. And yes, for 16 years he allowed his literary agent to circulate a one-paragraph bio stating that he was born in Kenya, which was revised numerous times over the years while continuing to state that he was born in Kenya. But I’m inclined to think he did that because it seemed cool and a way to sell books and not because it was true. And yes, he...

(Additional reporting by Adrian Croft, Jeff Mason and Steve Holland; Editing by Kevin Liffey and Paul Taylor) (Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama told the European Union on Wednesday it cannot rely on the United States alone to reduce its dependency on Russian energy, as relations with Moscow chill over its seizure of Crimea from Ukraine. Speaking on a visit to Brussels to discuss trade relations and the Ukraine crisis, Obama said concluding a new transatlantic trade pact, now under negotiation, would make it easier for Washington to license more gas exports. :snip: During a 65-minute lunch, European Council President...

At least 7,000 reservists have been recalled to the colours for immediate exercises lasting between 10 and 30 days. They’re told by the Polish authorities that the call-ups are “routine”: but the men say they haven’t been asked before and they’re well aware of the growing alarm in Warsaw at President Putin’s aggression. Three weeks ago, their Prime Minister, Donald Tusk, called a press conference to warn that “the world stands on the brink of conflict, the consequences of which are not foreseen… Not everyone in Europe is aware of this situation.”

 Forgive them for thinking they HAD ALREADY joined an anti-Russian alliance upon entering NATO...  While Poland may be a formal and full member of both NATO and the European Union, they have all but given up on any timely, effective support from these 'allies' in the wake of shocking weakness displayed by the West throughout the recent Crimean land-grab. With Obama a disinterested putz and the EU heavily dependent on Russian gas/oil, the Poles have clearly been shocked by events in Ukraine, and can see that they might be on their own should Putin decide to turn their way. With good reason: the Russians have taken their...

Inflammatory language: Nina Shtanski, foreign minister of Transdniestria The glamorous foreign minister of a breakaway region of Moldova is calling on Vladimir Putin to make her country his next conquest in eastern Europe. Few may have heard of Transdniestria, the unofficial and fictitious-sounding statelet whose head of international relations is 36-year-old Nina Shtanski. However, senior Western figures are alarmed that following the annexation of Crimea it is step two in a Kremlin masterplan to redraw the frontiers of Europe. This top diplomat in staunchly pro-Russian Transdniestria, who has a penchant for revealing black dresses, is gushing in her praise of...

It seems the words of Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk warning that “the world stands on the brink of conflict, the consequences of which are not foreseen... Not everyone in Europe is aware of this situation," are a little more real than some (US equity buyers) might suspect. As The Week's Crispin Black reports, at least 7,000 Polish workers in Europe have received call-up papers as army reservists in the last few weeks. Polish authorities dismiss it as "routine" but the men note this has never happened before. As The Week's Crispin Black goes on to note, At least 7,000...