'Limited time to prepare': Polish military chief warns of possible war with Russia

He shared this in an interview with Politico.

The article notes that Poland is already preparing for war. Earlier, Prime Minister Donald Tusk announced military training for volunteers. He also said that Warsaw plans to double its army to 500,000 troops.

According to Kukuła, in the event of a military conflict, Poland “does not have the kind of strategic depth” that some other European countries possess.

“We are neighbors with the Russian Federation and its ally Belarus, so we don’t have a buffer between us and them, and we have only a limited time to prepare and respond,” he said.

At the same time, Politico reports that the Polish government is planning to launch military training programs for civilians with no prior military experience. Additionally, the government will offer advanced training courses for individuals who already have some military background.

“The first [goal of the training program] is to improve the availability and quality of reservists. Currently, the army has a large number of reservists, but their average age is already around 45. If conflict and pressure on Poland persist for an extended period, well-trained reservist resources will be essential to ensure they can operate alongside professional soldiers and the Territorial Defense Forces,” said the chief of the General Staff, announcing plans to prepare 100,000 Polish citizens by the end of 2026.

Kukuła added that the second goal is to prepare society for the consequences of a crisis, even if not everyone goes through military training.

“[The] Russians are building a massive army in the rear. If peace is not reached and the split within NATO continues, Russia will attack the Baltic states. This could happen at the end of this year or the beginning of next. An invasion is part of their plan,” believes former Deputy Chief of the General Staff Leon Komornicki.

• Russia has developed 15 scenarios for potential military conflicts by 2045, six of which involve Northern Europe and four specifically involve Poland.
• The head of Poland’s National Security Bureau, Dariusz Łukowski, reported that based on current weapons stockpiles, the Polish military could hold off an attack for 1–2 weeks.
• NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte later stated that Russia remains the greatest threat to the Alliance, assuring that NATO’s response would be devastating in the event of an attack.