For a year and a half the conflict in Ukraine has forced Polish society to reflect on our place in Europe and in the planet in the context of the military threat of the state. It besides verifies attitudes towards this conflict and possible geostrategic choices that Poles could make. Many of our compatriots ask themselves whether this attitude, which has been imposed on Poles by Western media since the beginning of the conflict, and the Polish government is actually in line with Polish interests and brings benefits to Poles. Or should we decision distant from the current policy of "supporting Ukraine" and consider different geopolitical choices and another strategies? To answer that question, let us examine a fewer key issues.
GEOPOLITICAL REALITY
As we all know, our country is located bridged between 2 large organisms – the Western European planet with the dominant position of Germany and the Russian world, which in turn itself is the very large link of civilization, but besides bridged in relations with the dominant Asian Chinese civilization. The safety of the Polish bridge and its non-political and military engagement are in the interests of both worlds. Otherwise, the common interests of both of these blocks will search to organize the Polish "bridge" in specified a way as to guarantee the abovementioned objectives. It is clear that a tiny population and economical Poland, with a tiny army, cannot afford any policy in conflict with the common interests of the Western European and Russian world. Any action aimed at the prosperity and improvement of the state must be coupled in the long word with the objectives of key players on the continent or at least 1 of them. It was usually a choice between the German and Russian world, or a compromise with these dominant centres of force.
Modern past has taught us that any effort to "put perch" itself across Europe's interests is doomed to failure. This usually ended with dismemberment or national hecatomb as in September 1939. Poland (it must be repeated constantly) is simply besides tiny and weak a subject, without "deep" resources, to be able to impose its will on neighbouring countries. Therefore, any swarm with a hegemonic and "great" function in Europe is simply a false myth. Poland now, as in XVIII, fights for its endurance and can never be certain that it will succeed.
Knowing that we are weak towards our neighbours, we should decision all our forces and resources towards maintaining our statehood. We cannot do this any another way than through a skilled abroad policy. We cannot endanger anyone militarily due to the fact that we have a comparatively weak army, we have no large financial or demographic resources, and our culture and language are not large assets in the European arena. We should alternatively avoid any disputes and confrontations that could affect our relations with our neighbours, which in turn could be utilized by countries that are not friendly to Poland. Instead, we should do everything we can to establish relationship and best relations with all our neighbors.
ROLE OF RUSSIA IN THE POLISH HISTORY
Since from the beginning of our state existence Germany, the Teutonic State and then Prussia have always seen an expansion object in the Polish lands, our enlightened ancestors in XIV concluded that only erstwhile interacting with Russian peoples, then with Russia, the Polish nation has a chance to survive. The alleged union with Lithuania is – in fact a union with Rusins surviving in the territory of present Belarus and Ukraine. Poles were already besides weak to defy modern and increasingly "absolute" German states. This is why the last 700 years of Polish past have been so powerfully coupled with the past of Russian nations and then Russia. Basically, this geopolitical choice made by our ancestors is inactive valid today, as the direction and nature of the threats to the state has mostly not changed.
Since Peter I Russia has already been a powerful, modern force centre called Heatland by any – impossible to be tamed by any country of the sea or continental Europe. It has immeasurable human and natural material resources.
Russia's power affected all its neighbours, including Poland. Poles made Russia their own arbitrator due to the country's anarchy and deficiency of modern government. Russia had what Poland did not have - strong and efficient executive power and army. So the nobles themselves invited the Tsars to aid against the Swedes and then the Germanic states, and even against their own king. In the early 18th century Poland became a Russian protectorate, whose existence was guaranteed by the territorial full of the Republic. In the face of the state's weakness, only the fear of the power of Russia hampered the appetites of Prussia, Austria and Saxony against our cultural lands for nearly 100 years. A desire to repair the Czartoryski Familia utilizing the Russian curatela slow strengthened and modernised the state in an effort to keep the territorial position quo and one more time awaited a successful global situation. Unfortunately, the centrifugal forces and the ruthless policy of Prussia, which tried to prove to Russia that it was not able to control the full Polish land – prevailed in 1772 and 1793. Katarzyna II under force from the political situation – the war with Turkey and the next war with Poland followed further proposals by Frederick II. In exchange for Polish lands, Prussia abandoned the alleged "counsel with Poland", which had previously been proposed by the Polish Parliament. Katarzyna tried to throw the rescue wheel to Poles in the form of the alleged confederation in Targowice, which was an chance to focus Poles on the caryca and avoid the threat of dissection. Unfortunately, Polish elites with the king understood it besides late. A fewer years have run out for our patriots to see Napoleon's time and the political downturn in Europe. Violentness and ignorance of the Jesuit nobility who did not realize the meanders of modern diplomatic game buried the state for 123 years.
Russia's function in the past of the Polish nation was strengthened again after the triumph over France and after the Vienna Congress. In the then established Kingdom of Poland, the Russian Tsar was the king of Poland, but beyond that the administration, military training and language were Polish. This was a large advance after the Prussians, Austrians and the wave of Germanization.
Unfortunately, there came another eruption of the nobility's warch, which undoubtedly was the November Uprising. A group of subjects under the influence of various secret unions provoked a senseless rebellion, guided by what emotional exultations and external intrigues. After killing their commanders, the Smarkers imposed a war on Poles with Russia, the consequence of which was easy to predict. This comparatively advanced level of autonomy, which Poland gained during the Napoleonic period in 1815, was destroyed in 1831.
Another effort to change the scope of Polish autonomy appeared in the 1960s. Reasonable Polish patriot Aleksander Wielopolski tried to modernise the country with bold reforms concerning local governments and education and the position of peasants. Unfortunately, he was incapable to control the emotional upheaval of his fellow countrymen, who, encouraged by Germany, had been pushing for a fresh "national" uprising since 1860 and nothing could change their decision. The Polish Catholic clergy, which alternatively of toning the waves of unhealthy “national” populism at the time, fulfilled the disastrous function of the Polish Catholic clergy. Despite the efforts of the administration and the “national” Tsar itself, the powder barrel exploded in January 1863 and buried all hopes of improving the position of Polish lands.
The terrible and unnecessary defeat of the January Uprising cured Poles from emotional frosts. Most Poles realized that all uprising only backs us on the road to independency and Russia is not our main enemy, but it is Germany that is developing all the time at the expense of Polish cultural lands. This issue was yet explained to Poles by the large historical school of Kraków with Bobrzyński, Szujski and Kalinka at the head, and then by Roman Dmowski's national camp. Most of the enlightened people understood the essence of the hard geopolitical situation of Poland. The uprisings ceased, the focus was on the organisation of education and strengthening of pro-Polish forces. It must have been a success. And after the longest period without uprisings, Poland regained an independent existence comparatively easy in 1918.
Despite the restoration of independence, Poland was inactive besides weak to keep its independency for longer. The weakened Germans and the USSR were dynamically recovering and becoming powers that had to be reckoned with and considerations that had to be actively pursued. A senseless policy of the Sanitation Government seeing in Russia and then USSR the main antagonist stood in bright opposition to the geopolitical designation made by Dmowski before the war. Poland had no de facto political support another than the USSR, despite all its faults and reason ordered any cooperation despite prejudices and historical animosity. Whenever Poland rejected Russia, Prussia or Germany gave it their hand. So it was besides 1772, 1793 and 1830 and 1831 The September defeat in 1939 was a natural consequence of defeat in geopolitical reasoning of Polish elites who one more time did not realize the essence of their position. Although Dmowski explained it many times and it seemed that Poles had already done a geopolitics lesson. Corypheus of Sanction, who promised not to return a button from the uniform led to the biggest geopolitical crime – allowed German and USSR to cooperate against Poland. erstwhile again, the Polish people paid for prejudices and errors of the nobility. This time in a terrible way. Hitler's Germans murdered 20% of Poles in 5 years and ruined the country.
When it seemed that Poland was killed forever and would be distributed biologically by ruthless totalitarian mills III The Reich's large triumph of the USSR over all Nazi Europe completely changed the political climate. Poland was reborn again and within the limits only Dmowski could dream of. With Pomerania, the full Silesia and without the legacy of multiethnic alleged Kresów. The long sea border and large industrial centres have completely changed the image of the country from agricultural to industrial for trade with the world. Prussia disappeared and German threat, while the alliance with the USSR guaranteed full border security. With the fall of robes and landowners, there was a deep social democratization and the anticipation of social promotion for agrarian residents. The main culprit of Polish disasters - nobles and magnates left humiliated from the historical arena.
Under the block of large Brother from the east Poland did not gotta fight for biological endurance for the first time in centuries. There has been fast economical and cultural growth not recorded in the past of the country. It was only inhibited by an externally controlled colorful revolution of Solidarity and US sanctions in 1981.
1989 again marked a immense adverse geopolitical change. In place of 2 balancing political blocs, 1 planet hegemon – the USA, which took over the Polish state. After 50 years of peace and focus on its own affairs, Poland had to fight again for biological, cultural and spiritual endurance as in the 19th century without any warrant of success. Unmercifully drained economically – Poland became the alleged "strategic storm" of the overseas empire without any political subjectivity. Russia itself fighting in the 1990s for its existence was incapable to truly influence the course of affairs in Poland.
MAINTENANCE OF THE POLISH CONTAINMENT AND TRAGISM
The 1920s bring another major geopolitical change. The United States has weakened economically and culturally and the Atlantic monopolar planet has gone to lame. Many equivalent centres of force have been created in the world. It is clear that in order to survive, Poland must reorient its policy given the fresh global order.
Unfortunately, in fresh times, the Americans have planned to make Poland their advanced active bastion in Europe – another alleged Alamo, against Germany and the another state of Russia and Belarus. The concept of the alleged "intermarine" as a strategical bumper of the United States is highly contrary to Polish geostrategic interests, as has already been said. We will never be any alleged "junior partner" of the United States with adequate means to change anything effectively and in any way affect our neighbours' policies. In the latest “light” – the American concept Poland is tasked with fulfilling the roles of the alleged hyena. Its function is to ‘traw’, to break the unity of the continent, to torpedo various joint European initiatives, to ‘stick your legs’ to everything that cements the continent, of course, in agreement with State Department controllers. Unfortunately, Polish servitude has made us the prime player in fulfilling American ideas and laughing at most European elites.
It is besides not actual that Poland may be any leader of the countries of Central Europe, as the media tell us. Both Hungary and the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Bulgaria have completely different geopolitical goals that are mostly contrary to the Polish ones and they never recognise any Polish “priority”.
It is crucial to emphasise the large danger for Poland to play the function of an American strategical bumper. In the event of a change in the political situation and the withdrawal of the US from Central Europe, we will be completely alone with conflicted neighbours without any chance of external assistance. After all, we had this situation in 2009 for president Obama. What “punishment” will then be received by Poles from neighbouring “brazed” powers? Will this be a request for full neutrality and demilitarisation, or just federalization of provinces?
The current Polish policy reminds me of a dance on the line above the abyss without any reasonable alternative. As modern past has proved to us – Poland cannot act simultaneously against the interests of Germany and Russia. He must keep an alliance with at least 1 of his neighbors, not allowing himself to agree on his head. As a weaker country, he must always give his partner more than his neighbor. This is the only way to last as a political entity.
From our history, from the findings of the Kraków School, Dmowski and others know that always the best geopolitical choice for Poland is Russia. He lies close to us, he does not resent our lands, he does not want us to change culture, language and customs. It does not want to own our market, take our businesses, bargain our mineral resources, change genders for children, etc. This, on the another hand, has always been the primary goal of the collective West towards Poles, who have never treated us differently than European Indians, who must be exploited and robbed of their lands. Just remember the pre-war times, where almost the full manufacture was owned by strangers.
Let us see how fewer of our factories we have left, what Polish large trade looks like after 30 years of alleged "transformation", after all, the plan is announced by the West to close all Polish coal mines and power plants. besides for “our” good. Under the pretext of liberalism, democracy and climateism, people and our resources are being robbed. It's just plain Western imperialism well known all over the world.
As mentioned above, we are a weak and dominated country by the United States and we request Russia as a partner, whether we want it or not, to make anything stand for independency and effort to fight for our subjectivity. Without oil, gas and Russian coal, we will never be economically competitive. Without the “friendly” east border, our companies will never be actors in the large trade East – West and will always be at war. Without access to inexpensive and good Russian military technology we will never be able to adequately safe our army. Let's not think that these couple of planes and a couple of tanks for billions of dollars will strengthen our defense. It's fiction.
That is why the US artificially pumped the European-Russian conflict is completely against our interests. It besides threatens Europe as a full to enter the war and the large economical crisis. The Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban understands this perfectly, who has the false West tromtadas in his nose and perfectly wins Hungary's interests based in the most part on Russia's partnership. It knows well that without this partner it would only be the last mode in the chariot of US and EU policies. Orban already uses the emerging multicentric world, which increases the function of tiny states. If we want to rise the rank of our country, let us follow Orban's lead – a serious, alternate ground level in Europe is only 1 – Russia. And let's hurry up with the good word and outstretched hand so we don't get run over again.
Peter Panasiuk
