‘Russia is not invincible’: Polish president recalls past victories, says Moscow ‘floundering’ in Ukraine

Russian forces have struggled in Ukraine, and history proves the Russian army can be defeated in battle, Poland’s president said on Friday at a military parade marking the 105th anniversary of a Polish victory over the Red Army.

Polish President Karol Nawrocki, a political ally of Donald Trump’s MAGA movement, made the remarks as global attention turned to Alaska, where the US president is set to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin to discuss the war in Ukraine.

The event commemorated the Battle of Warsaw, in which Polish forces repelled the Red Army in 1920, halting the Soviet push into western Europe.

”Russia is not invincible,” Nawrocki said in a speech before the parade.

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”It lost to Japan at the beginning of the 20th century, it was defeated by the Poles in 1920, and today, for over three years… it has been floundering after its attack on Ukraine thanks to the support of allies and the solidarity of free nations, including, and at times especially, Poland.”

Already tense relations between Warsaw and Moscow have hit new lows since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022. NATO member Poland says its own role as a hub for aid for Kyiv has made it a target of Russian sabotage, cyberattacks and disinformation.

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Nawrocki joined a Ukraine teleconference with Europe an leaders and Trump on Wednesday that discussed the U.S. president’s forthcoming summit with Putin.

Warsaw, NATO’s leading spender on defence as a percentage of GDP, has ramped up its military spending since Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine. It plans to spend 5% of GDP on defence in 2026 to repel what it says is a renewed threat from the east.

Around 50 military aircraft, including F-16 fighter jets, flew overhead as 4,000 Polish soldiers accompanied by around 200 troops from NATO allies marched alongside the Vistula river beside Leopard, K2 and Abrams tanks, Borsuk and Rosomak armoured vehicles as well as Patriot and HIMARS artillery systems.

A naval parade featuring around 20 vessels also took place in the Baltic sea.

With inputs from agencies