The reflection on the Warsaw Uprising must reach into the present day – would we have young people today ready to fight for their homeland in case of war? – asked Jarosław Kaczyński during a speech marking the anniversary of the uprising.
Law and Justice (PiS) leader Jarosław Kaczyński laid a wreath today at monuments commemorating Home Army (AK) soldiers, clergy, and the 50,000 residents murdered during the Wola massacre in the Warsaw Uprising. On this occasion, he also addressed those gathered. “The reflection on the Warsaw Uprising must reach into the present day – would we have young people today ready to fight for their homeland in case of war?” – he asked, invoking the situation in Ukraine, where many young people fled to other countries or refused military service.
A grassroots movement to change this situation has emerged in Poland in the 21st century. The Warsaw Rising Museum, Independence Marches (MN), have helped build a readiness among the younger generation to fight. But a different attitude still dominates. We must change this if we don’t want to remain defenseless – Kaczyński said.
He also emphasized that unlike pre-war Poland, we must have allies who are both willing and able to help, and we must have a very strong army.
Without such an army, we will find ourselves in the position of those who cannot defend themselves, and therefore do not deserve support. Only those who can defend themselves receive support from allies – he stressed.