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Poland to Train 400,000 Citizens in “Largest Military Readiness Drive” Since WWII
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Poland has announced what officials call the largest national defense training program in its modern history—a sweeping effort to teach up to 400,000 citizens basic military, medical, and cyber-resilience skills by 2027, Defense Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz said, according to Polish media TVP Info on November 6.
The new initiative, dubbed “wGotowości” (“Ready”), will open voluntary military and crisis-response courses to anyone willing to participate—from students to retirees. The pilot phase begins this month, with training to be conducted at more than 130 units of the Polish Armed Forces and Territorial Defense Forces.
Participants can choose from modules including basic military instruction, first aid, survival skills, and cybersecurity. Around 20,000 people are expected to complete courses by the end of 2025. Civilian university students who agree to join the reserve will receive monthly stipends of $250.
“We live in the most dangerous times since the end of the Second World War,” Kosiniak-Kamysz said during the program’s launch at the Polish General Staff headquarters in Warsaw.
“A war is raging across our border, acts of sabotage occur in the Baltic Sea, and there is constant struggle in cyberspace. All this drove us over the past six months to design a nationwide defense-training project.”
The minister described wGotowości as Poland’s first large-scale attempt to build “societal resilience and readiness for crisis or security threats.” He added, “Security begins with each of us. Every citizen is called to care for our homeland.”
Deputy Defense Minister Cezary Tomczyk said that 32 training centers—mainly from the Territorial Defense Forces—are already ready to host participants.
“We trained the instructors over the last six months, and now, in November and December, we aim to train around 20,000 people. By 2026, we plan for 400,000 citizens to complete the courses,” Tomczyk noted.
Poland has dramatically ramped up defense spending and mobilization since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Warsaw has signed major arms deals with the United States, South Korea, and other partners, and plans to spend 4.8% of its GDP on defense in 2026—the highest proportion among all NATO members. The figure amounts to roughly $54.2 billion.
With 216,000 active troops, Poland already fields NATO’s third-largest army after the US and Turkey. Prime Minister Donald Tusk has said the government intends to expand the force to 500,000 personnel, combining professional soldiers, reservists, and volunteers.
Tusk also confirmed that Warsaw is holding “serious talks” with French President Emmanuel Macron about potential French nuclear guarantees for Europe’s eastern flank.
In parallel, Poland has asked US President Donald Trump to consider including it in NATO’s Nuclear Sharing program and to increase the presence of American troops on Polish soil.
The wGotowości program emphasizes voluntary participation and practical civil-military cooperation, reflecting a broader shift in Polish defense strategy toward citizen readiness. Alongside marksmanship and basic drills, classes will cover first aid, stress management, information hygiene, and counter-disinformation techniques—skills the Defense Ministry says are critical in hybrid-war conditions.
“We want to prepare society not only for armed conflict but for any national emergency—from cyberattacks to disinformation or infrastructure sabotage,” Kosiniak-Kamysz said.
Earlier, reports emerged that Poland plans to establish a national anti-drone defense network to counter increasing Russian aerial threats.
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