Reader’s Links for March 11th, 2023

Here is a link to the VladTepesBlog social media Mastodon Pod. Please feel free to check it out and sign up for an account if you are sufficiently annoyed with Twitter and Facebook to try something new.

Each day at just after midnight Eastern, a post like this one is created for contributors and readers of this site to upload news links and video links on the issues that concern this site. Most notably, Islam and its effects on Classical Civilization, and various forms of leftism from Soviet era communism, to postmodernism and all the flavours of galloping statism and totalitarianism such as Nazism and Fascism which are increasingly snuffing out the classical liberalism which created our near, miraculous civilization the West has been building since the time of Socrates.

This document was written around the time this site was created, for those who wish to understand what this site is about. And while our understanding of the world and events has grown since then, the basic ideas remain sound and true to the purpose.

So please post all links, thoughts and ideas that you feel will benefit the readers of this site to the comments under this post each day. And thank you all for your contributions.

This is the new Samizdat. We must use it while we can.

About Eeyore

Canadian artist and counter-jihad and freedom of speech activist as well as devout Schrödinger's catholic

22 Replies to “Reader’s Links for March 11th, 2023”

  1. New GOP Congress Gains Access to Jan 6 Committee Files – One File is Missing – Why and Where Is It? (VIDEO)
    By Joe Hoft Mar. 11, 2023 7:30 am0 Comments

    The Jan 6 Committee files are in the possession of the new GOP-led Congress and the documents are being looked through now.

    On Friday, GOP Reps Matt Gaetz and Dan Bishop joined Steve Bannon and Tim Pool in a discussion on the Jan 6 Committee files.

    The Jan 6 Committee in Pelosi’s Democrat and corrupt House was essentially led by GOP Rep. Liz Cheney. She lost her reelection by one of the largest margins in US history for an active representative.

    This criminal and unconstitutional committee’s purpose was to destroy the lives of Americans who knew the 2020 Election was stolen, prevent future protests, push the lie that Joe Biden won legitimately, and destroy President Trump.

    As the House has looked into the documents, they are finding phone number requests from Big Tele (major US phone companies) and Matt Gaetz shared this:

    I wonder if some of these phone numbers are going to match up to members of Congress and some of their staffs?

    During the discussion with the four individuals noted above, Matt Gaetz shared:

    One thing that I found interesting as we went through the files today, is that they are incredibly well organized, and as it relates to outgoing documents, they are almost completely complete. You can go through by name. I pulled the Charlie Kirk file and I saw the way that the Turning Point organization was targeted and it’s actually still being unfairly targeted.

    I pulled the Bernie Kerik file and saw the way they went after him. I pulled the Mark Short (former top aid to VP Pence) and saw how eager he was to cooperate and how even with friendly witnesses they played this game with the subpoena nonetheless.

    But there was one file with no documents in it that I’ve reviewed, and it was the Steve Bannon file…

    They were so meticulous but they missed this one.

    See the discussion in the tweet below:

    Charlie Kirk
    @charliekirk11
    ·
    Follow
    Rep. Gaetz details how he now has access to the J6 Committee files, outlining how the committee targeted me and my organization, and is indeed still targeting us. Mysteriously, the files on Steve Bannon are empty

    These people who ran the last Congress are criminals. They should be the ones sitting in the DC gulag, not the innocent, heroic Americans who sit in solitary confinement there today.

    https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2023/03/new-gop-congress-has-access-to-jan-6-committee-files-one-file-is-missing-why-and-where-is-it-video/

  2. U.S.-Based Chinese Scientists Violate Government Policy by Continuing to Collaborate with China’s Military, thus Acting Contrary to American National Security Interests
    By Jim Hoft Mar. 11, 2023 10:00 am42 Comments

    Chinese scientists working in the United States and supported by U.S. taxpayers are thumbing their noses at Joe Biden’s China policies.

    In December 2021, Biden’s Department of Commerce added China’s Academy of Military Medical Sciences to a list of entities “acting contrary to the foreign policy or national security interests of the United States.”

    Nevertheless, Chinese scientists working in the U.S. continued to work with scientists from the Academy of Military Medical Sciences.

    The following represent examples of a longer list of ongoing violations of U.S. government policy being tolerated by the Biden regime.

    China-trained Genhong Cheng of the University of California, Los Angeles and China-trained Pei-Yong Shi of the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston published a scientific article with Cheng-Feng Qin of the People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) Academy of Military Medical Sciences over a year after the U.S. government’s national security warning was issued.

    https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2023/03/u-s-based-chinese-scientists-violate-government-policy-by-continuing-to-collaborate-with-chinas-military-thus-acting-contrary-to-american-national-security-interests/

  3. redacted – Tucker Carlson: The truth needs to come out

    Tucker Carlson sits down with Redacted Host Clayton Morris for a wide ranging interview about the January 6th video controversy, the state of journalism, personal attacks and much more.

    • right now on YT that video has :

      2670 views – 2994 comments 20 000 likes 🙂 🙂 🙂

  4. We’re On The Brink Of A 2008-Style Financial Crisis” – Economist Warns “It’s Really Serious” (VIDEO)
    By ProTrumpNews Staff Mar. 11, 2023 11:50 am0 Comments

    The Biden administration is a complete disaster.

    Just yesterday, the federal government had to seize Silicon Valley Bank – this was the biggest bank failure since 2008.

    There is concern this can spread and cause a recession.

    The bank reportedly holds $173 billion in deposits.

    The crash could cause a recession.

    The company provided funding to 44% of all venture capital-backed tech and healthcare companies that publicly listed on a stock exchange last year, according to its website.

    Economist and Customers tried to pull millions of dollars out and can’t. Online banking and mobile services showing unavailable for some customers.

    Marco Havens CEO Stephanie Pomboy joined Tucker Carlson Tonight to discuss the state of the economy.

    Read: Dr. Peter McCullough On “The Holy Grail Of COVID-19 Vaccine Detoxification”

    She said, “what we are facing right now is really serious and we are on the brink of a 2008-style financial crisis and I’m not trying to be hyperbolic

    https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2023/03/were-on-the-brink-of-a-2008-style-financial-crisis-economist-warns-its-really-serious-video/

    • europravda – Beginning of a ‘new era’ after White House meeting between von der Leyen and Biden

      The President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen met with US President Joe Biden on Friday in an attempt to diffuse a transatlantic trade spat over subsidies for the green economy

      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kLFJE8IMxyA

      =============================
      WORLD EXCLUSIVE: HARRY AND MEGHAN MAY NOT BE ABLE TO PAY THEIR EXPENSES FOLLOWING COLLAPSE OF SILICON VALLEY BANK

      iSN has learned the bulk of their funds are now locked up in the failed institution.

      “It’s a complete disaster,” said a person familiar with the situation.

      https://twitter.com/isource_news/status/1634423686664171521

      BREAKING: HARRY AND MEGHAN STAND TO LOSE MILLIONS IN COLLAPSE OF SVB BANK

      Sources tell iSN the couple set up accounts following the advice of friends in Silicon Valley.

      “This is a major blow,” said our source, “They had all of Harry’s money there.”

      https://twitter.com/isource_news/status/1634413085787316225

      SVB BANK FAILURE SPELLS DISASTER FOR HARRY AND MEGHAN

      Couple had major money on deposit at the seized institution.

      “Their accounts may only be insured up to a maximum of $250,000,” said a source who asked not to be identified, “Harry’s millions from Spare may be lost.”

      ===================================

      OPRAH LOSES MILLIONS IN SVB COLLAPSE

      iSN has learned Oprah kept millions at the failed bank.

      “Like other celebs she went all in and now may have lost serious money,” said a person familiar with the situation.

      ==============================

      OPRAH STANDS TO LOSE $590 MILLION AFTER COLLAPSE OF SVB

      “All her biggest accounts were with the bank.” said a source familiar with her finances, “Like other tech savvy investors she banked with SVB and now it’s all gone.”

      ================================

      OCTOBER 2021 – DAILY MAIL – Harry and Meghan vow to ‘change the world’ by moving into ‘ethical’ banking: Couple become ‘impact partners’ of $1.3bn investment firm ‘Ethic’ after being introduced to the ‘hippy’ (ex- Deutsche Bank and JP Morgan) founders ‘by friends’

      The Sussexes have been appointed ‘impact partners’ at Ethic, based in New York with a huge fund of cash

      Couple introduced to firm by friends but haven’t said how much they have invested or if they will be paid

      Ethic claims it will only invest investors’ cash in businesses it believes passes its ‘social responsibility criteria’

      New deal comes after tie-ups with Netflix and Spotify and following their trip to the Big Apple last month

      Ethic was founded in New York by Briton Jay Lipman and Australian bankers Doug Scott and Johny Mair

      All three worked for big banks such as Deutsche Bank and JP Morgan before claiming to have epiphanies about the need for ethical funds, now one of the fastest-growing sectors of investment banking

      […]

      https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10084113/Now-Harry-Meghan-banking.html

  5. Three Women Missing After Traveling to Mexico from Texas
    By Cristina Laila Mar. 11, 2023 11:07 am83 Comments

    Three women are missing after driving from Texas to the Mexican city of Montemorelos last month.

    Marina Rios, 48, Maritza Trinidad, 47, and Dora Saenz, 53, crossed the border from Texas on February 24 to sell clothes at a flea market and haven’t been heard from since.

    The two sisters are from Peñitas, Texas, a small city next to the Rio Grande, the AP reported.

    AP reported:

    Read: Dr. Peter McCullough On “The Holy Grail Of COVID-19 Vaccine Detoxification”

    Two sisters from Texas and a friend are missing in Mexico after they crossed the border last month to sell clothes at a flea market, U.S. authorities said Friday.

    The abduction of four Americans in Mexico that was caught on video last week received an avalanche of attention and was resolved in a matter of days. But the fate of the three women, who haven’t been heard from in about two weeks, remains a mystery and has garnered relatively little publicity.

    The FBI said Friday it is aware that two sisters from Peñitas, a small border city in Texas near McAllen, and their friend have gone missing. Peñitas Police Chief Roel Bermea said their families have been in touch with Mexican authorities, who are investigating their disappearance.

    Beyond that, officials in the U.S. and Mexico haven’t said much about their pursuit of Maritza Trinidad Perez Rios, 47; Marina Perez Rios, 48; and their friend,

    https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2023/03/three-women-missing-after-traveling-to-mexico-from-texas/

  6. Giving the middle finger is a ‘God-given right’, Canadian judge rules
    Gesture may not be civil or polite but ‘it is not a crime’ and is protected under Canada’s constitution, judgment says

    Oliver Holmes
    Fri 10 Mar 2023 06.17 EST
    Giving your neighbour the middle finger may not be polite but is protected as part of a person’s right to freedom of expression under the Canadian constitution, a judge has ruled.

    In a 26-page decision, Dennis Galiatsatos dismissed a case against a man accused of harassing his neighbour in a Montreal suburb.

    “To be abundantly clear, it is not a crime to give someone the finger,” he said in a ruling dated 24 February. “Flipping the proverbial bird is a God-given, charter-enshrined right that belongs to every red-blooded Canadian,” he added,

    https://12ft.io/proxy?q=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.theguardian.com%2Fworld%2F2023%2Fmar%2F10%2Fgiving-the-middle-finger-is-a-god-given-right-canada-canadian-judge-rules

  7. jerusalem post –Could vaccines be a cure for antibiotic-resistant bacteria?

    Israeli scientists announce 100% effectiveness of mRNA vaccine against Black Plague-causing bacteria in preclinical trial performed on mice.

    Bacteria resistant to antibiotics are one of the biggest challenges facing modern medicine.

    An estimate published last year by the Lancet found that more than a million deaths could be directly attributed to antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in 2019. In addition, another 3.65 million deaths involved people with diseases that showed some form of AMR.

    When those numbers are combined, it makes AMR the third leading cause of death worldwide. And scientists have predicted that by 2050, AMR will kill more people than cancer.

    According to Pfizer’s chief scientific officer, one solution could be developing a vaccine strategy for preventing rather than treating these AMR diseases.

    “If you get rid of the diseases, then you are not going to have to use as many antibiotics,” said Annaliesa Anderson, senior vice president and chief scientific officer for Pfizer Vaccine Research and Development.

    Several vaccines against bacteria have been developed, such as those against tetanus, pertussis (whooping cough) and diphtheria. However, bacteria are much more complex organisms than viruses, and therefore developing vaccines against bacterial infections has taken longer and proved more complex and challenging.

    The world’s first mRNA vaccine for bacteria?

    Last week, scientists from Tel Aviv University and the Israel Institute for Biological Research (IIBR) announced that they had developed what could become the world’s first mRNA vaccine for bacteria. When tested on mice, it was found to be 100% effective against yersinia pestis, the bacteria that led to the deadly Black Plague from 1347 to 1351.

    The results of their work were published in the peer-reviewed journal Science Advances.

    The vaccine was developed and worked similarly to the mRNA vaccine developed by Pfizer and BioNTech. The researchers said it could enable the rapid development of effective vaccines for bacterial diseases when they strike and spread.

    “So far, mRNA vaccines, such as the COVID-19 vaccines familiar to all of us, were assumed to be effective against viruses but not against bacteria,” explained TAU’s Dr. Edo Kon. “The great advantage of these vaccines, in addition to their effectiveness, is the ability to develop them very quickly. Once the genetic sequence of the virus SARS-CoV2 – COVID-19 – was published, it took only 63 days to begin the first clinical trial. However, until now, scientists believed mRNA vaccines against bacteria were biologically undoable.”

    CORONAVIRUS WAS NAMED for “corona,” a crown, and referred to the spike protein surrounding the antigen. The mRNA coronavirus vaccines work by making antibodies to that spike protein, stopping the virus from infecting the cells and causing disease.

    “We made the messenger RNA that can encode that spike protein,” Anderson said, “We mixed it with the nanoparticles, which forms the vaccine. The vaccine is then given to a person, and the nanoparticles help the mRNA enter the person’s cells.”

    Once the mRNA has entered the person’s cells, it uses the cell’s machinery to express the protein antigen – the spike protein, in this case. But rather than a live virus coming out of the cells to interact with the immune system, just the spike protein, which has no viral parts, is expressed. It enters the body, comes in contact with the immune system, and makes antibodies, protecting individuals if they come into contact with the pathogen.

    Bacteria, however, are a different story. They do not need human cells to produce their proteins, and the proteins produced in bacteria can be different from those made in human cells, even when based on the same genetic sequence, Kon explained.

    “Researchers have tried to synthesize bacterial proteins in human cells, but exposure to these proteins resulted in low antibodies and a general lack of protective immune effect in our bodies,” Kon said. “This is because, even though the proteins produced in the bacteria are essentially identical to those synthesized in the lab, being based on the same ‘manufacturing instructions,’ those produced in human cells undergo significant changes, like the addition of sugars, when secreted from the human cell.

    “To address this problem, we developed methods to secrete the bacterial proteins while bypassing the classical secretion pathways, which are problematic for this application,” he continued. “The result was a significant immune response, with the immune system identifying the proteins in the vaccine as immunogenic bacterial proteins. To enhance the bacterial protein’s stability and make sure that it does not disintegrate too quickly inside the body, we buttressed it with a section of human protein.”

    THE COMBINATION of these two strategies is what led to the whole immune response. Within a week of exposure to the bacteria, all unvaccinated animals died, while those vaccinated with the Israeli vaccine candidate remained alive and well.

    Israeli research is ‘stellar, opens up possibilities’

    Prof. Dan Peer, vice president of research and development and the head of the Laboratory of Precision Nano-Medicine at the Shmunis School of Biomedicine and Cancer Research at TAU, has been working with mRNA for around 20 years.

    Peer developed a lipids delivery system licensed to BioNTech years before Pfizer began working with the company to create its COVID-19 vaccine.

    He said that “as a proof of concept,” the work is “stellar” and opens up several possibilities. First, they are expanding the field of mRNA vaccines for infectious diseases so that they can be used not only for viruses but theoretically for bacteria. They are second, expanding the world’s arsenal against AMR. Third, this breakthrough could lead to others, such as discovering how mRNA could be used to tackle other challenges, such as fungal infections.

    Peer said he and his team have been working on this discovery for three-and-a-half years and admit it is still in its infancy. However, he said that after the results of this recent experience, “we believe this is doable.

    “Due to excessive use of antibiotics over the last few decades, many bacteria have developed resistance to antibiotics, reducing the effectiveness of these important drugs. Consequently, antibiotic-resistant bacteria already pose a real threat to human health worldwide. Developing a new type of vaccine may provide an answer to this global problem,” Peer continued. “Imagine you go to a hospital, and before you are hospitalized, you get a vaccine against certain strains known to be occupied in the hospital, and you are protected.”

    Pfizer has been developing vaccines that helped prevent antimicrobial resistance for decades, such as its vaccine for preventing invasive disease and pneumonia caused by dozens of streptococcus pneumoniae bacteria that spread by airborne droplets or by direct contact with infected saliva or mucus. These bacteria can lead to severe infections and, in some cases, even death.

    However, Anderson said the company’s conjugate vaccine against pneumococcal diseases “is the most complex biological product ever made.”

    Three factors for developing a vaccine

    ACCORDING TO Kena Swanson, vice president for viral vaccines in Pfizer’s Research & Development department, three factors need to be understood when developing a new vaccine.“We are always trying to understand No. 1 the medical need, and No. 2 is a technical path forward. So, understanding the science, and for some of those diseases with antimicrobial resistance, understanding the right antigens representing that pathogen might elicit a protective immune response. No. 3 is understanding the best way to present these antigens to the immune system,” she said. In the case of SARS-CoV-2, scientists could characterize the antigen so that they could faithfully reproduce them in a way that they were presented naturally on the virus. However, doing this can be more challenging with bacterial protein antigens, Swanson said.

    “We have a lot of understanding, but there is still more to be done,” she added, highlighting that there has been only one Phase I clinical trial for chlamydia, for example. In part, this is because the disease was genetically intractable for decades. As a result, it was only in the last 10 years that scientists have been able to tease out what genes are essential and critical for infection versus not to help further guide vaccine design.

    “Even the thought of using mRNA as a molecule in a vaccine was not something that happened immediately. Instead, this process took thousands of scientists over many years to understand the mRNA piece, the lipid nanoparticle piece, and the antigen design piece,” Swanson stressed.

    “These three important discoveries happened to be present at the right time when that virus emerged,” she added. “Difficult things take incremental discoveries over time that you hope will lead to that big ‘aha moment’ and something successful. That worked for COVID. With some of these other diseases and antimicrobial resistance, we need more time to have that understanding.”

    On this note, Peer agreed: “We have a very valid proof of understanding,” he said. “Now we have to choose the right bacteria.”

    https://www.jpost.com/health-and-wellness/article-733994

    • Japan reports first death directly linked to COVID-19 vaccine

      A health ministry panel said Friday that a causal link between the November death of a 42-year-old woman and the COVID-19 vaccine shot preceding it “cannot be denied” — the first acknowledgement of such a link among nearly 2,000 reports so far of deaths following COVID-19 vaccinations in Japan.

      The woman received a Pfizer shot targeting the omicron variant on Nov. 5 at a mass vaccination center. She felt sick seven minutes later, and her breathing stopped after about 15 minutes. Initially suspected to be having an anaphylactic shock, a doctor at the center performed CPR and tried to administer an adrenaline shot, but could not because IV access could not be obtained, according to a report submitted to the vaccine side effects committee under the ministry’s Health Sciences Council.

      The woman was taken to a hospital but died of acute heart failure an hour and 40 minutes after receiving the COVID-19 shot. A postmortem CT scan showed that she had experienced acute pulmonary edema, a sudden buildup of fluid in the lungs, the report said.

      The woman was obese and had high blood pressure and diabetes, the report added, noting that no autopsy was performed.

      “From the data obtained from (CT) images, no abnormalities were found that could have caused the death other than the vaccine. All things considered, the direct causal link between the vaccination and the death cannot be denied,” the report said.

      A total of 382 million shots have been administered in Japan since the rollout of COVID-19 vaccines began in February 2021.

      As of January, 1,963 deaths of those age 12 or older have been reported, including 1,751 (6.3 per million) following Pfizer vaccines, 211 (2.6 per million) after Moderna shots and one (3.7 per million) involving a Takeda-Novavax dose.

      Except for the case of the 42-year-old woman, the ministry says a causal link between the shots and the deaths has not been established.

      https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2023/03/10/national/japan-first-covid19-vaccine-death/

  8. john campbell –A credible explanation behind vaccine adverse events, Marc Girardot

    …. on inadvertent intravenous administration of vaccines.

    This evidence and analysis demands a response from regulators around the world. If this is not forthcoming, I consider the regulators negligent.

  9. neil oliver – 15 Minute Cities – Neil’s discussion. Saturday 11th March 2023.

    ( 12 min 42 )

    Neil Oliver discusses the 15 minute cities agenda with Alan Miller from the Together Declaration.

  10. the telegraph –Poland builds Europe’s largest land force to counter Russian threat

    Warsaw is embarking on its biggest re-armament drive in 50 years in response to the growing threat posed by Russia

    Christmas came early for Captain Marek Adamiak and the troops of Poland’s 11th Artillery Regiment.

    Stationed not far from the Russian border, his unit has long grappled with outdated kit.

    But in mid-December they received 24 South-Korean made K9 self-propelled howitzers that can hit targets up to 34 miles away, bringing new and deadly capabilities to the regiment.

    “As an artillery officer I’m excited by the new equipment,” Captain Adamiak told The Telegraph. “We can manoeuvre better, we can shoot from anywhere. There is no place we can’t shoot from. We had a lot of old artillery but now we have very new weapons.”

    Given the war happening in neighbouring Ukraine, it’s given them the confidence that if conflict came to their doorstep, they would now have the weapons to fight back. “We can see from the way Ukrainians use artillery that they need to be very fast: into action, fire and move on,” he said.

    The 24 guns now in his regiment’s care are just the tip of a massive defence spending programme by Poland.

    Polish soldiers seen at a training ground in Nowa Deba in September 2022 as part of joint exercises with the US and UK

    Spurred on by war next door and the growing fear that Poland could one day be in the sights of a Kremlin looking to return to the days when the Russian empire once stretched to River Vistula, the Polish government is determined to arm up – and fast.

    This year it will spend 4 percent of its GDP on defence, an amount double the Nato requirement, and one that will make Poland the biggest, per-capita, spender on defence in the alliance.

    Some of the deals for new equipment pre-date the Ukraine war when Poland, already conscious of the Russian threat, had started to revamp armed forces still burdened with a lot of Soviet-era equipment.

    But Putin’s invasion turbo-charged the process, and prompted a host of new contracts to be signed as well.

    “The criminal assault carried out by the Russian Federation, targeting Ukraine, and the unpredictable nature of Putin means that we need to accelerate the equipment modernisation even further,” Mariusz Blaszczak, the Polish defence minister, told the Defence24 portal.

    “It is of key importance to increase the levels of security as fast as possible for Poland. We can do this only by creating a strong military. Strong enough to deter any potential aggressor from deciding to attack.”

    No one can doubt Poland’s ambition.

    To start with, it has placed orders for 1,000 K2 main battle tanks from South Korea, and 250 brand new M1A2 SEPv3 Abram tanks from the US. This will turn Poland into the owner of Europe’s biggest tank force, dwarfing the UK’s fleet of 227.

    Its artillery will be bolstered by the arrival of 600 K9s, 18 HIMARS launchers with 9,000 rockets, and 288 K239 Chunmoo MRL systems from South Korea.

    Over 1,000 Polish-made Borsuk infantry fighting vehicles will carry Polish troops into battle, while air cover will come from 96 AH-64E Apache helicopters bought from the US, and 48 FA-50 combat aircraft now on order from South Korea.

    “We are changing our equipment very, very quickly,” said Captain Adamiak. “It really is revolution, not evolution.”

    All of this will be underscored by plans to double the size of the Polish Army to 300,000, which would turn Poland into Europe’s biggest military power, in terms of manpower, west of Ukraine.

    Talks are also underway about building a “massive arms factory” in collaboration with the UK, in part to help produce and repair equipment and weapons destined for Ukraine.

    The equipment, however, comes with a hefty price tag. Poland has enjoyed years of economic growth, and GDP is still predicted to grow this year despite the economic ramifications of the war in Ukraine, but the cost of its lavish defence spending spree is going to be substantial.

    Poland plans to spend to spend some £85 billion by 2035 on weapons, and this year’s defence budget stands at a record PLN 97 billion (£18 billion) But Dziennik Gazeta Prawna, a Polish newspaper, has estimated the actual 2023 amount could soar to £24 billion when off-budget funds are included.

    This level of spending is not without risks.

    “I fear that all of this spending could drain the budget, if not properly managed” said Magdalena Jakubowska, a defence expert and vice president of Res Publica-Visegrad Insight, a foundation covering Central European politics.

    “The public may not be aware that there may well have to be cuts to certain—civilian projects. We’ve had stable economic growth for the past few years, but now we are close to a recession. If we don’t boost the economy with the EU money (from a pandemic recovery fund), which we still have not got, then the situation could become critical.”

    The European Commission has denied Poland access to around £30 billion in grants and cheap loans from the EU’s post-pandemic Recovery and Resilience Facility owing to a dispute over the rule of law. The Polish government has introduced legislation that might resolve the deadlock but for the time being the money remains out of reach.

    Polish soldiers conduct an artillery live-fire drill with K-55A1 self-propelled howitzers at an army training range in Paju, South Korea in March

    To help Poland, last year, the US Congress approved $288.6 million (£239 million) in military financing to “deter and defend” against the increased threat from Russia. The cash will help but with inflation running at around 17 per cent in Poland and economic growth slowing the defence budget could become difficult to meet.

    Despite this, Ms Jakubowska added that so far Poles seem prepared to shoulder the financial burden.

    “With war, perhaps, just around the corner Poles realise you have to sacrifice to take care of the national interest. If people fear a war, then they are understanding.”

    Cross-party support for military spending also looks set to continue despite the deep and often bitter political divisions in Poland. Conscious of the threat posed by Russia, opposition parties have for the most part accepted the need for Warsaw to spend, at least for now -if only to avoid the fate of their neighbour.

    Poland goes to the polls in the autumn, and defence, and who can best defend the country, will no doubt become an election issue.

    “I have said many times that it is better to be in debt, and even have to make cuts to budgets in other areas, than to be occupied,” said Jaroslaw Kaczynski, the leader of Law and Justice, Poland’s governing party and considered by many to be the most powerful politician in the country, earlier this year.

    “Whoever has seen what is happening in Ukraine should have no doubt about this.”

    https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2023/03/11/revolution-polish-army-builds-europes-largest-land-force/