The 83rd anniversary of the Polish army pushing back the Soviet Union army advancing to Western Europe near the capital Warsaw was celebrated enthusiastically in Poland as part of the Armed Forces Day. While concerts, picnics, various exhibitions and competitions were organized throughout the country, the most magnificent of the ceremonies took place in the capital Warsaw. Despite the air temperature reaching 32 degrees, tens of thousands of Poles flocked to Fontanna Park and its surroundings on the banks of the Vistula River to watch the ceremony in the capital.
After the speech of Polish Minister of National Defense Mariusz Blaszczak at the ceremony in the capital, Polish President Andrzej Duda addressed the nation. President Duda said, “I pay my respects to those who shed their blood on the battlefields so that Poland can be free, independent and safe. The Polish soldiers changed the course of history with the victory that stopped the Bolshevik expansion both for our country and for the West in 1920,” and said that it is inevitable to talk about security at the point reached today. .
“INDEPENDENT UKRAINE, INDEPENDENT BELARUS…”
President Duda said, “Everyone sees what a fundamental issue security is. Today we have to live in dangerous times again. Behind our country’s eastern border, the war caused by Russian aggression has brought pain, death and suffering. Unfortunately, there is no end to it. Ukraine is also a part of Poland. “Those who criticize our support for Ukraine today do not understand what Poland’s security depends on. Independent Poland is based on independent Ukraine, independent Belarus.” said.
Saying that his country was the target of hybrid attacks by Russia and Belarus just before the Ukraine war, Duda thanked the security forces who successfully protected Poland’s eastern border and said that they did not and will not come to provocations as a state.
“BAYRAKTARS, WE ARE MODERNIZING OUR ARMY WITH F-35S”
Stating that they have taken important steps in strengthening the security of Poland and restructuring the army in the last 8 years, Duda said, “The number of soldiers and military units was reduced before 2015. There is no return to this wrong policy. In 2015, the number of soldiers was 97 thousand and the number of divisions was 3. More than 170,000 soldiers are serving in the Polish army, we are forming the fifth division. We are strengthening our command system, modernizing our army with Abrams and K2 tanks, Apache, Black Hawk helicopters, Bannermen, F-35, F-16s. No one will ever return to our country. We will continue to equip our army with modern weapons so that it does not have the courage to attack.” said.
After President Duda’s speech, the official parade of 2,000 soldiers began. US, British, Romanian and Croatian soldiers serving in Poland also marched with Polish soldiers. At the ceremony, where the paratroopers demonstrated, artillery fire was made.
Rosomak armored personnel carriers, self-propelled mortars, Krab and K9 artillery howitzers, HIMARS rocket launchers, Abrams, Leopard 2, South Korean-made K2 tanks, Borsuk infantry fighting vehicles, Baobab-K minelayers, as well as numerous technical, medical and logistics The passage of the vehicle was greatly appreciated by the citizens.
SOVIET MADE VEHICLES NOT INCLUDED
The most interesting part of the ceremony was the flight of nearly 100 aircraft. The passages of F-16, FA-50 warplanes, transport planes, Black Hawks, AW101 helicopters were applauded. The ceremony in Warsaw, which turned into a show of strength of the Polish army, was the first time that any military vehicles, equipment and equipment made by the Soviet Union were used.
Celebration ceremonies within the scope of the Polish Armed Forces Day were not held in 2020 and 2021 due to the Covid-19 epidemic, and last year due to the war in Ukraine.
PUTIN WARNED WITH HARD WORDS
Russian President Vladimir Putin said in a statement in the past weeks that Poland’s lands in the west were a gift from the leader of the Soviet Union, Josef Stalin. The western lands of present-day Poland are Stalin’s gift to the Poles. Have our friends in Warsaw forgotten that? We will remind them.” had used the words.
Noting that he has seen reports that Poland is planning to send troops to Ukraine, Putin said: “As for the Polish leaders, they are probably planning to form a coalition under the umbrella of NATO and then rip off a large piece for themselves. According to their beliefs, they expect to intervene directly in the conflict in Ukraine in order to reclaim their historical lands, that is, today’s Western Ukraine. It is known that they also dream of Belarusian lands. Aggression against Belarus means ‘aggression against Russia’. We will respond with all the means at our disposal. I will say only one thing, this is a very dangerous game and those who make such plans should think about the consequences.” had made the assessment. (AA)