Poland, a staunch Ukraine ally, is preparing for wider conflict

This week the head of the United Nations warned the war in Ukraine has a good chance of spilling over into other countries. Poland has been preparing for that possibility for months.

Poland sits to the west of Ukraine and is one of its staunchest supporters. The Polish government led the charge to give Ukraine main battle tanks from the West, like the Leopard 2s. Poland is also hosting Ukrainian tank crews to learn how to operate Leopards.

Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki was one of the first world leaders to say NATO allies should give Ukraine F-16 fighter jets. This week, Polish President Andrzej Duda met with Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelenskyy to talk about further military cooperation between the two countries.

A Russian defeat in Ukraine is vital to Poland, because the alternative means Poland is likely the next target of Russian aggression.

Ramzan Kadyrov, a key Putin ally and the leader of Chechnya, said this week he’s not going to hide his intentions anymore. The Chechen leader said on Telegram he wants to invade Poland immediately after Ukraine falls.

Chechen dictator Ramzan Kadyrov has called for an independence referendum to be held in the Polish region of Silesia.

He said Russia should give “organization assistance” to such a referendum and that he’s in favor of a military operation to “de-nazify” and “de-satanize” Poland. pic.twitter.com/uKGQiWdAxO

— Visegrád 24 (@visegrad24) February 7, 2023

“What if, after the successful completion of the NMD, Russia begins to denazify and demilitarize the next country? After all, after Ukraine, Poland is next on the map! I will not hide that I personally have such an intention,” Ramzan wrote.

Tens of thousands of Russian troops and armored divisions are preparing for an impending Ukraine offensive. They are staging in Belarus, which also shares a border with Poland. The war in Ukraine is creating a humanitarian crisis in Eastern Europe, which Poland said is by Russian design to destabilize European economies.

Poland said time and time again its commitment to Ukraine is unwavering, but that doesn’t mean Poland isn’t preparing at home.

In an effort to ward off an influx of refugees from Belarus, Poland closed another key checkpoint along the border this week, a move Belarus condemned as “catastrophic.”

Belarus says Poland closing border crossing point is 'catastrophic' decision https://t.co/7dXkIzmUHl pic.twitter.com/euTe9Hkvbe

— Reuters (@Reuters) February 10, 2023

Poland is ramping up its defense spending budget to 4% of GDP, and just agreed to buy $10 billion worth of HIMARS and long-range attack missiles from the United States.

In addition to fortifying its professional military, Poland is also working with civilians in a program called “Train with the Army.” Every Polish citizen aged 16 to 65 is invited to learn from military instructors who teach weapons handling, survival fundamentals and first aid. Minors need a parent or legal guardian’s permission to participate.

President Joe Biden is also said to be planning a trip to Poland to mark the one-year anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The trip will further solidify the former Soviet bloc country’s status as a key ally in the fight against Russia.

Reuters contributed to this report.

This story has been updated to reflect the timing of President Biden’s trip to Poland.