Over the past year, Russia’s aggression towards its neighbors has prompted Poland
to ask for protection from Western nations.
In July 2015, NATO announced that they would not be establishing permanent military bases
in Poland.
Like most Eastern European countries, Poland has little chance of standing up to Russia
alone.
So we wanted to know: just HOW powerful is Poland?
Well, for starters, Poland takes up about 120,000 square miles with a population of
40 million.
This ranks them 6th in the European Union for both.
Poland is also the most populous of the post-soviet satellite states, having actively surpassed
pre-1989 standards of living.
In fact, Poland has a very high human development index, ranking 35th alongside Lithuania and
Saudi Arabia.
At the same time, Poland also suffers from one of the lowest birthrates in the world,
which some have ascribed to a weak job market and a lack of childcare services.
Still, Poland’s relatively stagnant population does not reflect a stagnant economy.
With a GDP of about half a trillion dollars, growing at a rate of around 3%, Poland has
had the fastest economic growth in the EU since the 2008 global financial crisis.
Some have attributed this to the fact that Poland is the 7th hardest working country
in the world, based on OECD statistics.
Since the end of Soviet control, they have turned to a market based capitalist economy,
and thrived in the private sector.
Besides corporate investments in oil and banking, Poland’s largest source of revenue is the
export of automobiles and car parts.
They are one of top producers of passenger vehicles in Central and Eastern Europe, accounting
for more than half a million cars in 2014.
Poland is also a popular tourist spot, especially since their admission into the European Union.
With hundreds of castles and fourteen UNESCO World Heritage sites scattered countrywide,
Poland is the 17th most visited country in the world.
Besides having a strong economy, Poland also enjoys a strong military force.
Poland’s Armed Forces rank 19th in the world, and 5th within the EU, with over 600,000 active
troops.
Poland also operates one of the largest navies in the Baltic Sea, and contributes significant
resources to international UN peacekeeping missions.
They were also a major support force for the US Navy during the 2003 invasion of Iraq.
Despite a history of illegal occupation, most notably by the Nazis followed by the Soviet
Union, Poland has seen incredible recovery and progress over the past few decades.
They have a hardworking population, a rapidly growing economy, and one of the strongest
armies in the region.
All in all, Poland is clearly the most powerful success story to come out of the collapse
of the Soviet Union.
Russia’s encroachments on ex-soviet states doesn’t only affect Poland, but neighboring
countries too.
to find out how powerful the baltic states are, check out this video.
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