Poland's government has launched what it calls the largest civilian defense training initiative in the country's modern history. The 'wGotowości' program aims to provide military skills to 400,000 citizens by 2026, offering voluntary instruction ranging from basic combat techniques to cybersecurity. Defense Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz announced the initiative as a direct response to Russia's ongoing war in Ukraine and the persistent threat Moscow poses to NATO's eastern flank.
Yet this ambitious institutional effort reveals a troubling disconnect between Warsaw's security posture and public sentiment. While Poland now spends 4.7% of GDP on defense—the highest in NATO—and maintains the alliance's third-largest army, polling data suggests significant portions of the Polish public remain reluctant to participate in defense preparedness programs or doubt the military's effectiveness. This gap between governmental ambition and citizen buy-in poses a fundamental challenge to the program's success.
Institutional commitment meets strategic necessity
Poland's defense transformation reflects genuine strategic vulnerability. Sharing a border with Ukraine and facing NATO's documented concerns about Russian airspace violations, Warsaw has concrete reasons to bolster civilian resilience. The voluntary wGotowości program offers a spectrum of training options designed to create a broad-based defense capability without resorting to mandatory conscription.
The initiative fits within Poland's broader military modernization, which includes advanced procurement programs and forward defense posture. Warsaw has positioned itself as Ukraine's most stalwart supporter among European allies while simultaneously reinforcing its own defenses. The civilian training program extends this logic into the societal domain, attempting to build the kind of whole-of-society resilience that Finland and the Baltic states have cultivated over decades.
Members are reading: Analysis of why public skepticism toward defense training poses a deeper challenge to NATO deterrence than equipment shortages.
Forward-looking implications
Poland's civilian defense initiative represents a test case for how NATO's eastern members balance governmental security commitments with public engagement. The program's ability to attract participants and maintain quality training will signal whether democratic societies can match authoritarian states' ability to mobilize populations for long-term strategic competition.
The broader implication extends beyond Poland. If the alliance's most committed eastern member struggles to generate public participation in voluntary defense training, this suggests a vulnerability that adversaries will note. NATO's eastern defensive architecture depends not only on military deployments but on resilient societies willing to invest in their own defense. Poland's experiment with mass civilian training offers an early indicator of whether that broader requirement can be met.
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