Poland plans 'radical' strengthening of its military

Poland’s ruling party leader has presented plans for a bill to “defend the fatherland.”

WARSAW, Poland -- Poland's ruling party leader presented plans Tuesday for a bill to “defend the fatherland,” legislation he said is aimed at “radically” strengthening the military as the country faces migration pressure from its eastern neighbor Belarus.

Jaroslaw Kaczynski, who holds the position of deputy prime minister but is undisputedly the most powerful politician in Poland, said the bill is needed due to a deteriorating international situation and also to Poland's geopolitical location. Examples he gave included neighboring “Russia's imperial ambitions” and the hybrid warfare being waged by Belarus against Poland and other European Union nations using migrants.

"If we want to avoid the worst, that is war, we have to act according to the old rule: ‘If you want peace, prepare for war,’” Kaczynski said at a news conference in Warsaw.

He argued that, as a country which lies on the eastern flank of the European Union and NATO, Poland must have a serious deterrent force and the “ability to effectively defend itself for a long time on its own.”