Polska w Układzie Warszawskim – realizacja zobowiązań

The Warsaw Pact created in 1955 for almost 40 years played an important role in maintaining international security. Poland, due to its military and economic potential, was the second largest member of this alliance. For this reason, it sought to ensure a real impact on its functioning, which was reflected in its active participation in the implementation of the provisions of the agreement on the political, military and economic levels. Poland's political activity was expressed in numerous initiatives to ensure peace and in active participation in international cooperation. Military commitments were implemented through the preparation of modern operational troops, from which a strategic and operational union was created in the form of a Maritime Front, ready to act as part of the United Armed Forces of the Warsaw Pact throughout the period of membership in this alliance. In turn, economic cooperation was manifested in close cooperation in the production of various weapon systems and military equipment, as well as the development of defense infrastructure for both own needs and allies.

Theoretical and conceptual approaches to the role of national and regional security on ensuring stability in Eastern Europe

Events in Europe in the last decades of the twentieth century (the fall of the Berlin Wall, the unification of Germany, the abolition of the Warsaw Pact, the collapse of the communist bloc and the USSR) led to a reconsideration of Eastern European security. After the abolition of the Warsaw Pact, the ,,balance of power" strategy in achieving security no longer works and, as such, the Eastern European security system must be rebuilt in accordance with the new realities. The tendencies regarding the reorganization of the European security system are diverse and contradictory, each actor (state, group of states, organization) wanting to occupy a more advantageous place in order to be able to promote and, if necessary, to defend its own interests. This article aims to determine the main definitions and theories of national and regional security in the context of Eastern European stability. Also the authors are willing to identify some problems and trends in the region and to list the main actors who are responsible for dealing with challenging issues and how to avoid them.

Varieties of Opposition to Bureaucratic Leninism in Eastern Europe, 1968–1985

Brezhnev’s Bureaucratic Leninism was broadly emulated (or imposed) in East European communist regimes. But it was controversial and led to many rejections. The Prague Spring of 1968 was an effort to democratize the communist party from within. It was crushed by Warsaw Pact troops. Poland experienced a repeated wave of worker rebellions, as well as a cross-class alliance that resulted in Solidarity almost coming to power, until it was crushed in 1981 by Polish special-service troops. Hungary experimented with narrow-scope marketization of its economy, insufficient to create prosperity, but enough to avoid the extent of economic stagnation plaguing the Soviet Union. All these set the stage for Gorbachev’s reforms.

The Arsenal of the Mediterranean Revolution

This chapter elaborates the capture of the Yugoslav ship Srbija off the Algerian coast by the French navy on 7 August 1957, which was then escorted to the military port of Mers-el-Kebir. It notes the independence of Morocco and the crowning of Sultan Mohammed as King Mohammed V, who provided strong support to those fighting against French and Spanish colonialism. It also discusses police officers in Casablanca that confiscated war material from the shipment of the Czechoslovak party and secretly distributed it to the Algerian insurgents. The chapter reviews the Warsaw Pact summit that took place in Budapest from 1 to 4 January 1957, wherein the renewed communist unity under the leadership of Nikita Khrushchev was demonstrated. It pays attention to Marshal Tito's attendance at the summit, where he gave his public support to the renewed Cominform, hoping to redeem himself for the secret support he had been giving to Imre Nagy.

Charter 77 in the journalism of the Parisian “Kultura”

Although the Czechoslovak theme was not of particular interest in the journalism of “Kultura” (compared to Ukrainian or Lithuanian issues), it covered issues concerning Poland’s southern neighbour. The year 1968 marked a special period of increased interest in Czechoslovakia and the associated process of a series of social, political and economic reforms, which went down in history under the name of the Prague Spring. The period after the invasion by the Warsaw Pact troops and the start of the so-called process of normalization was also closely commented on by columnists and analysts of “Kultura”. However, particular attention was paid to the activities of the opposition in the area of Charter 77. The purpose of this article is to show how the Parisian “Kultura” referred to the opposition movement in Czechoslovakia. Moreover, Czechoslovak writers associated with Czechoslovak immigrant communities spoke out more often in “Kultura” pages

Dyplomacja Nicolae Ceauşescu wobec przemian politycznych w Polsce w 1989 roku

Nicolae Ceauşescu’s Diplomacy in the Face of Political Changes in Poland in 1989 In 1989, Romania belonged to the communist countries, which particularly strongly attacked communist Poland for carrying out democratic reforms. For many months the diplomacy of communist leader Nicolae Ceaşescu tried to organize a conference of socialist countries on the subject of Poland, but as a result of Moscow’s opposition it did not come to fruition. During the Gorbachev era, the Soviet Union rejected the Brezhnev doctrine, while Romania actually urged its restoration. This was in contradiction with the current political line of Ceauşescu in favor of not interfering in the internal affairs of socialist countries. However, in 1989 it was a threat to communism, which is why historians also have polemics about Romanian suggestions for the armed intervention of the Warsaw Pact in Poland. In turn, Romania did not allow Poland to interfere in the problems of the Polish minority in Bukovina.

Od Czechosłowackich Sił Zbrojnych do Czechosłowackiej Armii Ludowej. Armia czechosłowacka w trakcie zimnej wojny 1950–1956. Plany rozbudowy i przekształcenia organizacyjne

The article attempts to characterize the organizational transformations of the Czechoslovak army in 1950–1956. Plans for the expansion of the Czechoslovak army were formulated in September 1950. Its numbers in 1953 – the peak period of its development – reached 300,000 soldiers, and the expansion was carried out under the constant supervision of the Soviet General Staff and Soviet military advisers. The membership of Czechoslovakia in the Warsaw Pact from 1955 was in fact the legalization of the facts – the submission of the Czechoslovak army to an external disposition center, and its combat value and capabilities were questionable.

NVA a upadek muru berlińskiego

Nva and the fall of the Berlin Wall Contrary to the arrangements from Potsdam, the remilitarization of both German states began as early as 1950. In 1956 the East German army was officially created under the name of the National People’s Army. The NVA was organized into four branches: Ground Forces (Landesstreitkräfte), Navy (Volksmarine), Air Force (Luftstreitkräfte) and Border Troops (Grenztruppen). In the years 1956–1990 they were the third largest (after the Soviet and Polish army) armed forces of the Warsaw Pact. As in other armies of the Eastern Bloc, the NVA was subject to strict party control. However, when the Berlin Wall was overthrown, this army remained a passive observer of events. After the reunification of Germany, only a few of its officers and soldiers were taken over by the Bundeswehr.