12.03.202431 min

On March 12, 1999, Poland, the Czech Republic and Hungary officially became members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). The documentary film "NATO. Article 5" describes the process Poland underwent to join the alliance. Former Polish president Lech Wałęsa shares his memories of persuading Boris Yeltsin to agree to Poland's NATO membership. Poland's subsequent entry into NATO is described by another former president, Aleksander Kwaśniewski, as a remarkable accomplishment. Key roles in this process were played by Zbigniew Brzezinski - a respected Polish-American political strategist, diplomat and scholar, and Jan Nowak Jeziorański, one of the most notable resistance fighters during World War II and an influential journalist within American political circles. Also involved were the then-American President Bill Clinton and his Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright.   "NATO. Article 5" tells the journey of Poland, which, at the time of joining NATO, had a low sense of value and felt insecure about its military capabilities. However, now, thanks to joint exercises, standardization of procedures, and equipment modernization, NATO forces can operate as a well-coordinated army, of which Poland is an integral part.   It is worth noting that the first use of Article 5 occurred after the Al-Qaeda attack on the World Trade Center in New York on September 11, 2021. At that time, Polish soldiers were deployed to Afghanistan as part of NATO's solidarity operation. Polish soldiers, often risking their own lives, participated in difficult missions in Kosovo, Bosnia, and Iraq.Rozwiń