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| Donald Tusk is urging people to go out to vote in order to defend themselves |
Vote if you don't want war. That's the stark message from Poland's Prime Minister, Donald Tusk, ahead of this weekend's European elections. His campaign emphasizes security, particularly the threat of Russian aggression.
With pro-Russian parties gaining ground in central Europe, Tusk's Civic Coalition stresses the importance of a united EU stance against Moscow's dangers. He's urging Poles to vote to protect their nation.
This resonates with many Poles, who, due to historical and geographical reasons, are wary of their powerful neighbor. Northern Poland shares over 230 km (142 miles) of border with Kaliningrad, a heavily militarized Russian exclave marked by barbed wire and monitored by vehicles with thermal imaging. At the main crossing, the word "RUSSIA" is spelled out in red letters. Every busload of passengers is meticulously screened before crossing.
Security tightened further when President Vladimir Putin launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine over two years ago. Now, in the lead-up to the Euro vote, Tusk promises more measures. The "Shield East" project is a 10-billion-zloty (£1.992bn) initiative to bolster Poland’s border with advanced surveillance and trenches, signaling to "the enemy" to "stay away" from Poland. This effort will be coordinated with Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia, who share similar concerns about Russia.
In contrast, politicians in Slovakia and Hungary advocate for "compromise" with Moscow, often echoing Kremlin talking points and calling for concessions from Kyiv. However, Poland remains firmly convinced of the risk posed by Putin’s Russia if Ukraine loses this war.
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| Poland has a 232km (144 mile) border with Russia |
While Tusk's team focuses on security, the main opposition, Law and Justice party (PiS), is addressing other issues. PiS criticizes the EU’s migration deal and the Green Deal against carbon emissions, despite previously supporting these policies while in power. Nonetheless, Poland has been investing heavily in defense under PiS due to the Russian threat, and the party hasn't completely abandoned the security theme.
One PiS candidate became a minor internet sensation with a campaign video showing him stopping a Russian tank, reminiscent of Tiananmen Square. "We've stopped evil many times before, and we will stop it again," declares Karol Karski, a bearded professor in a suit and spectacles, standing with one arm outstretched towards a tank smashing through the forest.
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| In one school in Grojec, children have been learning survival skills |
Here in Poland, even the younger generation are being put on guard.
In a school just outside Warsaw, children have been learning survival skills. It’s part of a new programme that’s sending soldiers from the Territorial Defence to teach emergency drills in classrooms across the country.
From evacuation to orienteering, via resuscitation, they’re useful skills. But the teenagers we met were clear why they’re getting the training.
"Because there is a war in Ukraine and we are in danger," 17-year-old Sebastian told me, in a break between drills.
Not nervous, just matter of fact.
"Russia is near to us and they could attack us, I think," Igor agreed. "We need to learn how to defend ourselves."
"One of the factors behind the creation of this project is the situation on our eastern border, and the state’s response to the real threat," Captain Dominik Pijarski of the 6th Mazovian Brigade confirmed.
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| Capt Dominik Pijarski says Poland has learned lessons from Russia's invasion of Ukraine |
I asked whether he was concerned about a military threat from Russia.
"Only fools are not afraid," the soldier replied, before adding: "I believe that the entire nation has learned the appropriate lessons from what is happening … and is preparing to be ready at the highest level, in the face of a real threat."
But wariness of Russia doesn’t always translate into unconditional support for Ukraine.
A short drive out of Warsaw leads deep into farming country and small villages marked by towering crucifixes and Catholic shrines.
Lately, some of the fruit farmers here have left their fields to protest both on the Ukraine border and in central Warsaw.
They’re upset at the EU Green Deal which will increase their production costs.
But they’re also worried by the competition from Ukrainian farmers: exporting certain goods tariff-free as a form of support to the war-blasted economy.
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