Most Poles Support Idea of Joint EU Military, Poll Shows

22.3% of Poles said “definitely agree” and 30.3% “rather agree” that the EU should have a joint army, according to a poll by SW Research commissioned by a private news website Onet. 

17.4% “rather disagreed” and only 12.2% rejected the idea entirely. 17.8% were uncertain. 

There was a notable difference in how voters of different parties responded to the poll. 

Supporters of the ruling coalition, which encompasses a broad spectrum of political alliances ranging from center-right liberals to the left, support the idea more enthusiastically. Depending on which specific party or alliance they voted for, full or partial support among them ranged between 60.3% and 69%. 

The notion is refuted by between 16.3% and 28.5% of the voters of different coalition parties, with the number of left-wing voters who completely refute the idea being so negligible, as to not account for even a fraction of a percent. 

Just under half (49%) of voters of the right-wing conservative Law and Justice (PiS), Poland’s main opposition party, support a joint European force, which is still more than 35% of those who reject the idea. 

The only group of voters that rejects the idea (47.1% versus 38.9% in favor) are the supporters of the far-right Confederation, which brings together hardline conservatives and economic libertarians under a mantle of nationalism. 

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The survey’s results correlate strongly with attitudes to European integration, and to a lesser extent with support for Ukraine in its fight against the Russian invasion.

Europe’s own army

Speaking at the Munich Security Conference last week, Ukraine’s president called on EU leaders to establish a joint military force for the bloc. 

He said: “Many leaders have talked about Europe needing its own army. An army of Europe. I really believe that the time has come. The armed forces of Europe must be created.”  

In spite of most Poles, including many supporters of the ruling coalition being in favor, the Polish government is less enthused by the idea.  

Radosław Sikorski, Poland’s top diplomat, told TVP World later that day that “we should be careful with this term because people understand different things,” which the results of the subsequent survey demonstrated. 

“If you understand by it the unification of national armies, it will not happen,” Sikorski said, but added that he has “been an advocate for Europe, for the European Union, to develop its own defense capabilities.”