Military Parade on Polish Armed Forces Day — President Andrzej Duda at the military parade marking Polish Armed Forces Day
Źródło: TVN24 International

President Andrzej Duda thanked Poland's soldiers for their service as the country celebrated Armed Forces Day on Wednesday. President's speech was followed by a military parade that was held for the first time on the Wisłostrada, a street running along the river Vistula.

A national holiday, Polish Armed Forces Day is celebrated annually on August 15 to commemorate the anniversary of the country's 1920 victory over Soviet Russia at the Battle of Warsaw during the Polish-Soviet War of 1919-1921.

The day was marked with a host of ceremonies attended by the country’s top officials and included a military parade at Wisłostrada.

President Duda addressed the soldiers: "we, the Polish people are extremely proud of you, our soldiers. We give our thanks to you for defending our freedom and the freedom of others when our is safe."

"As long as the economy allows for it, I think we should increase our defense spending faster than previously planned. We should intensify our efforts to increase military spending up to 2.5 percent of GDP, already from 2024," added the President.

After the president’s speech, the traditional annual military parade took place, involving nearly hundreds of soldiers, about 200 military vehicles, and some 100 airplanes and helicopters.

The Great Independence Parade has been watched live by some 120.000 spectators. Thank you for being with us - the Ministry of Defense wrote on Twitter on Wednesday.

After the parade, the military equipment presented will be exhibited at the Military Picnic next to the National Stadium.