This year’s parade on August 15 will be an expression of "strength, agency and unity" in the face of "threats from the East," Defence Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz has said.
Image: Polish Ministry of Defence/gov.pl
Speaking during a rehearsal ahead of the Armed Forces Day parade, Kosiniak-Kamysz encouraged the public to celebrate the anniversary of Poland's "great victory" over the Russian Bolsheviks at the 1920 Battle of Warsaw.
"Our presence will be an expression of gratitude to past generations and hope for future ones," he said.
Poland's Defence Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz speaks during a rehearsal ahead of the Armed Forces Day parade in Warsaw. Photo: PAP Radek Pietruszka
"It will also show our strength, agency and unity in the face of threats from the East," he added.
Thursday's military parade in the Polish capital will showcase hardware including South Korean-made K2 battle tanks, Polish-produced 155 mm Krab self-propelled gun-howitzers, Kleszcz reconnaissance vehicles, K9 Thunder self-propelled howitzers from South Korea, and domestically produced Rosomak wheeled armoured personnel carriers, the Polish defence ministry said in an announcement.
A rehearsal ahead of the Armed Forces Day parade. Photo: PAP/Radek Pietruszka
Other weaponry will include US-made M1A1 Abrams tanks, HIMARS missile launchers, Black Hawk multi-role helicopters, and Patriot medium-range air defence systems.
In addition to the parade, military picnics and other attractions are planned throughout the country.
The August 15 holiday marks Poland’s landmark victory against the Russian Bolsheviks in the 1920 Battle of Warsaw, in which Polish troops led by Marshal Józef Piłsudski defeated an advancing Red Army.
Image: Polish Ministry of Defence/gov.pl
The 1920 Battle of Warsaw has been listed among the most important battles that have decided the fate of the world.
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Source: IAR, PAP, gov.pl
Click on the audio player above for a report by Radio Poland's Michał Owczarek.