ABSTRACT
Poland neatly illustrates the differences between the “eagle” and “frog” perspectives on polarity. The Soviet Union was able to use its ideological and political domination as well as the economic dependencies it forced upon Poland and, of course, its crushing military superiority to control Polish behaviour. Since the 1950s Poland was, to quote the popular metaphor, “the most funny barrack in the whole camp”. Being the first among the countries that enjoyed the “Autumn of Nations,’ Poland has experienced rather gradual transformations from its communist past to the democratic present. In 1989 Poland had three neighbours: the USSR, Czechoslovakia, and the GDR. The first condition for Poland for practical implementation of the Euro-Atlantic option was the necessity to re-establish relations with its western neighbour and principal “gateway” to Europe, Germany. NATO membership is granted to Poland as well as to at least some other Central European states.
