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AFP - Investigators scrambled on Sunday to determine if pilot error was to blame for the fiery crash of a Soviet-era airliner that killed Polish President Lech Kaczynski and 96 others. The presidential party was en route to a memorial service for Poles massacred by Soviet troops in World War II when its Tupolev Tu-154 airliner crashed in thick fog while approaching Smolensk airport, in the west of Russia. The disaster sent Poland into shock.

Poland stands alone in refusing swine flu vaccines By VANESSA GERA The Associated Press Wednesday, January 13, 2010; 10:02 AM WARSAW, Poland -- The decision seemed fraught with risk: a government refusing to import swine flu vaccines amid worldwide warnings of a spreading epidemic. But Poland did just that, becoming the only country worldwide known to reject the vaccines over safety fears and distrust in the drug companies producing them - concerns international health experts reject as unfounded. Now that the current outbreak appears to have peaked in much of Europe, many Poles feel their government has been vindicated: Countries...

Polish Army crushes Wehrmacht  at Mokra, Sep.1,1939 - 70th anniversary of WWII first battle  The Battle of Mokra took place on September 1, 1939 near the village of Mokra in Silesia, Poland. It was the first crutial battle of  World War II and one of the first Polish victories in the war.In brief: On  September 1, 1939 gen.Reinhardt's 4th Panzer Division  and German 31st Infantry Division were crushed by Poloish Volhynian Cavalry Brigade. Germans lost about 150 tanks and armored vehicles and more than 1,000 soldiers. The remnats of the 4th Panzer Division were forced to withdraw back to Germany....

Mine kills three Polish soldiers in Afghanistan 21 August 2008 | 00:09 | FOCUS News Agency Warsaw. An exploding mine killed three Polish soldiers in Afghanistan Wednesday, seriously injuring a fourth member of their patrol, the Polish army told PAP news agency. The blast happened about 20 kilometres (12 miles) from their Ghazni base in central Afghanistan, Major Jacek Poplawski told the agency. The wounded soldier, part of a 1,200-strong Polish contingent attached to the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF), was transported by helicopter to another base at Bagram, he added. Polish troop numbers in Afghanistan are due to rise...

Poland should also remove Soviet monuments - Katyn Committee 21:35 | 28/ 04/ 2007 WARSAW, April 28 (RIA Novosti) - The time has come to remove Soviet-era monuments in Poland, a Polish public organization said Saturday echoing the Estonian government's decision to remove the Bronze Soldier statue in central Tallinn. The Katyn Committee which is made up of relatives of Polish officers, who were executed on the orders of the Soviet authorities in the village of Katyn near Smolensk in western Russia in 1940, said just like Estonia Poland "suffered from the Soviet occupation, while Soviet monuments have always been...

Poland to keep military contingent in Iraq, says Prime Minister Belka. On a visit to Baghdad on Tuesday, Poland's prime minister, Marek Belka said his country was determined to keep its military contingent of around 1,400 troops in Iraq. He said in the future Polish soldiers might focus on training missions, once stability returns to the war-torn country. Poland has the third largest contingent in the United States-led coalition in Iraq.

Lost chance for Nobel Peace Prize for John Paul 2005-04-09, 10:16 Polish foreign minister Adam Rotfeld has expressed regret that John Paul II had not been honored with the Nobel Peace Prize. He stated there has not been another person more worthy of such recognition as the late Pontiff. The head of Polish diplomacy stated John Paul II had contributed as no-one else to peaceful transformations in today's world, especially in Central and Eastern Europe. Minister Rotfeld underscored that the whole pontificate of the Polish born pope had been a continuous peace building process. He reminded that John Paul II...

Visegrad Group countries agree to promote defense cooperation WARSAW, March 4 (Xinhuanet) -- Defense ministers of the Visegrad Group member states agreed here Friday to enhance defense cooperation. The defense ministers from Slovakia, Poland, the Czech Republicand Hungary welcomed Poland's suggestion of establishing a training center in Poland for training airforce in the region, with the Czech minister pledging to provide training aircraft. The ministers also exchanged information on the peace-keeping mission of their respective countries in Iraq and other regions ofthe world. The Visegrad Group was formed in 1991 in Visegrad, Hungary, by Poland, Czechoslovakia and Hungary, with the...

GIFTS FROM NORWAY: Military sells subs to Poland Carin Pettersson 03.11.04 12:47 While Norwegians love to import cheap, Polish labor, the military sells Norwegian submarines for a symbolic amount to the Polish military. The Polish Navy has purchased five submarines of the type Kobber for a symbolic amount, reported the Norwegian paper Stavanger Aftenblad’s web edition. The investment does not put a large strain on the Polish defense budget because Norway is selling the five submarines for NOK 5 (USD 0.78). The value of the submarines from the 1960 is estimated to NOK 1.2 billion (USD 186.6 million). The submarines...