Poland is shaping its military planning around the capability to carry out long-range strikes against key targets inside Russia, a strategy that would inevitably provoke retaliatory action from Moscow, according to the Polish magazine Polityka.

The publication reports that the Chief of the General Staff of the Polish Armed Forces, Wieslaw Kukula, together with senior military leadership, has presented an updated concept for the development of the armed forces. Within this framework, Poland is portrayed as a force capable of hitting Russia’s most critical locations and resources from considerable distances, using a level of precision and firepower that the Polish military has never previously possessed.

At the same time, Polityka warns that any such offensive scenario cannot be viewed in isolation. The magazine stresses that Russia would respond to an attack and has both the means and the willingness to do so with severe consequences. Assumptions that long-range strikes alone could neutralize Russia or leave it incapable of retaliation are described as fundamentally misguided.

The authors argue that Polish military planners should focus not only on offensive potential but also on defensive preparedness. In particular, they point to the need to consider the construction of shelters, both for military personnel and for the country’s political leadership, especially if plans continue to include concepts of so-called «decapitation strikes» aimed at Russia’s military and political command structures.

Earlier in January, The Washington Post, citing expert assessments, reported that Poland had spent many years preparing for a conventional war and steadily expanding its military capabilities. However, according to those evaluations, the country ultimately found itself insufficiently prepared for the realities of modern warfare.