The Soviet army in Poland

Abstract

On 4th June 1989 the first free parliamentary elections were held in Poland. They were the first elections of this kind in the communist block, which was formed as a result of WW II and the Yalta agreement. This way the process of the destruction of the communist system in Europe, and in consequence the collapse of the Soviet Union, which had been initiated by the establishment of the trade unions „Solidarność”, sped up rapidly. In December 1991 the first Polish parliament (Sejm), emerged in fully democratic elections1, appointed the government of Jan Olszewski2. In this way the process of effective action aiming at the transformation of the status of Poland from the Soviet satellite into a sovereign state was initiated. It was also the beginning of the process of establishing the new geopolitical position of Poland in Europe.