Thousands of Poles are signing up for voluntary military training as Poland’s army seeks to fill its ranks with professional and voluntary personnel amid escalating concerns over Russia’s military aggression. For many in Poland – which endured decades of Moscow’s domination under the Soviet Union – the fear of Russian hostility looms large. Those concerns have only grown this week after Poland downed Russian drones in its airspace on Wednesday – the first time a member of the NATO military alliance is known to have fired shots during Russia’s war in Ukraine.
More than 20,000 Poles signed up for voluntary military training in the first seven months of 2025 – in line with record levels last year. Around 40,000 volunteers are expected to complete military training by the end of this year, more than double the 16,000 in 2022. Since the start of the war in 2022, Poland has more than doubled its defence spending from 2.2% of economic output to 4.7% this year – the highest ratio of military spending in the 32-nation NATO alliance, well ahead of more established European powers like Germany, France and Britain.
