A large contingent of the Russian Armed Forces is already deployed in Belarus, on the doorstep of Europe, to train for open warfare against NATO starting this Friday. The Zapad 2025 exercise will include the development of the Oreshnik ballistic missile, a much more dangerous weapon than the drones with which Moscow tested NATO defenses in Poland on Wednesday. The Kremlin maintains that these maneuvers are not directed against anyone,
Backed by the populist rightwing opposition Law and Justice party, which ruled Poland between 2015 and 2023, Karol Nawrocki unexpectedly won Poland's presidential election after running a campaign under a Trumpesque slogan of Poland first, Poles first. The historian turned politician had met the US president before the election, securing his highly prized endorsement and presenting himself as someone who could safeguard Poland's interests with the conservative US administration.