Poland's Position in Europe Essay

Poland is geographically situated in central Europe and is bordered by the Russian Federation and Baltic Sea in the north, Lithuania, Belarus and Ukraine in the east, Slovakia to the south, and Czech Republic and Germany in the west. Poland has 70 mountains that reach more than 6,500 feet high, all of which are located in the Tatras, the mountain range that serves as a natural border between Poland and Slovakia in the southern portion of the nation. There is also another mountain range—the Beskids, which forms part of the natural border between Poland and the Czech Republic and stretches all the way to the Ukraine in the east. There is also the Sudetes, which stretches from the north down to the Glubczyce Plateau. The Bieszczady Mountains in the southeast and the Gorce Mountains are small formations. The Vistula Dalta is the lowest point in Poland, 6 feet below sea level. The Vistula and the Oder are the nation’s longest rivers, both of which flow into the Baltic. Poland also has many lakes. The Masurian Lake District has more than 2000 lakes. Roughly one-third of Poland is forest, and the country has a temperate climate.

Poland in the medieval ages was a place of conflict, with fighting among Christians and pagans. During the 14th century, Jews were given a great deal of rights in Poland and essentially established their own state within the Polish state. While the rest of Europe was falling to the Black Plague that same century, Poland remained relatively free from the disease. In the century leading up to WWI, Poland was fought over by the Russians on one side and the Prussians on the other. Wilson helped Poland to unite once more after WWI; however, skirmishes between the Czechs and the Germans paved the way for the escalation that…

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…the West puts Poland in a particularly important geopolitical spot, as the country seeks to enhance its ties with the U.S. by offering America a permanent base from which it can wage war, if necessary, against Russia, should the latter adopt an aggressive stance towards the West. The fighting in Ukraine has also been seen as a problem for Poland, which seeks to maintain the stability it has developed since the 1990s.

Poland’s place in central Europe makes it one of the more vulnerable countries, should war break out between Russia and the West, as the nation sits right in between the two. However, should peace prevail, the country could benefit from the transportation of goods and services, as energy and goods flow East to West and vice versa. From a geopolitical standpoint, though, Poland is interested in maintaining a strong relationship with the U.S. just in case it does end up…