The article traces the connection between the peaks of the campaign to dismantle Soviet soldiers' monuments and the dy
namics of Polish-Russian relations. The key milestones in this process were the 1994 agreement and the 2016 decommuniza
tion law. Media materials and reports from diplomatic agencies were used to identify discrepancies in the historical policies
of Russia and Poland, as well as the formal justifications for removing monuments from the memorial space.
The dismantling of monuments has become a practical tool for shaping the national narrative and is divided into
three stages, depending on domestic political conjuncture, the external political context, and the state of bilateral rela
tions. The research findings show that the course of dismantling monuments intensified after 2014, coinciding with the
deterioration of relations with Russia and internal political changes in Poland. These processes are also driven by mo
tives related to redefining national identity.
|