Polish President Andrzej Duda is in Ukraine today to meet with Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky and address the Ukrainian parliament.

The surprise visit was announced by the President’s office early this morning.

According to Jakub Kumoch, the top foreign-policy aide to the Polish president, Duda will be “the first foreign head of state to be honored in this way since the beginning of Russia’s war on Ukraine.”

During his speech to the Verkhovna Rada today, Duda is expected to “pay tribute to those who, by fighting to defend Ukraine, are fighting to defend Europe.”

Last month, Duda visited Ukraine alongside his counterparts from Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia, meeting Zelensky in Kyiv and visiting the towns of Bucha, Borodyanka, and Irpen.

Today mark day 88 of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Source: Radio Poland, PAP

Military picnics were held across Poland yesterday to encourage voluntary basic military service, a new type of army recruitment.

The picnics were part of an organized call for recruitment made yesterday by Defense Minister Mariusz Błaszczak, during a visit to the town of Kraśnik in southeastern Poland.

“We know what is going on beyond our eastern border,” Błaszczak explained, “Russia has attacked Ukraine, people are being killed, the Putin regime is committing war crimes…the best and most effective response to these threats is to boost the Polish armed forces.”

The new form of military service, Błaszczak announced, will help Poland realize its aim of having “a combined force of 300,000, including 250,000 career soldiers and 50,000 territorial army soldiers.”

According to Lieutenant Colonel Przemysław Majewski, head of the Military Recruitment Center in Słupsk, voluntary basic military service lasts 12 months and consists of two stages.

The first stage consists of 28 days of basic preparatory training, followed by 11 months of specialist training. Soldiers receive full professional pay (PLN 4,560) during training, do not have to live in barracks, and can resign from the service at any time during this period.

Poland enacted a new homeland defense law in March to modernize and expand the country’s armed forces into one of the strongest in NATO in response to Russia’s war on Ukraine.

Source: Radio Gdańsk, PAP, Radio Poland

The head of the Pomeranian Voivode, Dariusz Drelich, was in Malbork yesterday to attend the swearing-in of new soldiers for the 7th Pomeranian Territorial Defense Brigade.

The military oath is considered one of the most important and solemn events in the life of a soldier and an expression of the highest obligation towards one’s country.

The mission of the 7th Pomeranian Territorial Defense Brigade (7 PBOT) is to defend and support the local community. In peacetime, such activities typically include providing support during and after natural disasters and carrying out rescue operations in an emergency or crisis.

Source: Radio Gdańsk

According to a newly released study by global consulting firm KPMG, 69 percent of Polish companies experienced a cyber security incident last year, a notable increase from 2020.

The “Cyber Security Barometer” survey found that the number of businesses subject to at least one cyberattack last year increased by five percentage points compared to 2020, confirming that cyber security threats are on the rise.

According to respondents, the leading cyber-threat is data theft, when passwords and login data are stolen through email and text-messaging scams, followed by data leaks caused by malicious software.

The survey also found that Polish firms are increasingly worried about potential attacks from hacker groups supported by foreign countries.

The full report can be found online at: https://home.kpmg/pl/.

Source: Radio Poland, home.kpmg/pl

The Gdańsk Museum has announced it is offering a reward of PLN 1000 for anyone who has evidence of a Gdańsk postcard issued before July 20, 1889.

The competition is part of the new “Wanted” exhibit on nineteenth-century postcards currently on display at the Palowa Gallery of the Main Town Hall in Gdańsk.

A unique lithographic stone, two fragments of a postcard accidentally found in Poland and Germany, and the oldest postcard in Gdańsk are only three of the nearly 200 exhibits of the “Wanted” exhibition, which is open now until July 31st.

On Saturdays throughout May and June, the museum is offering special curatorial tours with the creators of the exhibition and collectors of historical postcards.

More information on the exhibit and the postcard competition can be found on the museum’s website.

Source: Radio Gdańsk

Weather

Today will be partly cloudy and cool, with a slight chance of rain and a strong breeze coming in from the northwest. Temperatures will peak around a high of 13°C, or 55°F, dropping to an overnight low of 6°C or 43°F. Slightly warmer weather is expected for tomorrow, with similar temps and a chance for rain later in the week.

Elizabeth Peck