US ambassador invokes Warsaw Uprising to warn Poland's adversaries: 'Poland never surrenders'

On the eve of the 82nd anniversary of the Warsaw Uprising, US Ambassador Tom Rose released a video recorded on Warsaw's Vistula Boulevards near the Mermaid statue, weaving history into a contemporary warning. Speaking on behalf of President Donald Trump and the American people, Rose had attended a commemorative ceremony at the Warsaw Uprising Monument on Plac Krasińskich the day before and shared his message on the social platform X.

The 1944 uprising in numbers

The Warsaw Uprising began on 1 August 1944, when roughly 40-50 thousand soldiers of the Polish Home Army rose against German occupation. Planned for just a few days, the insurgency stretched into a 63-day battle. The insurgents understood the revolt was a fight for honour more than victory and that most would die. After the uprising was crushed, Nazi forces methodically razed Warsaw street by street. Casualty figures vary: some accounts cite about 18,000 fighters killed and 25,000 wounded, with civilian deaths estimated at 180,000; other reports speak of nearly a quarter of a million dead. In September 1944, the 1st Tadeusz Kościuszko Infantry Division attempted to cross the Vistula to help, losing 3,500 soldiers. Half a million survivors were expelled, and the city was left in ruins.

After the uprising was crushed and almost a quarter million Varsovians died, the Nazis committed a final act of cruelty and systematically destroyed Warsaw. Street by street, building by building, house by house, until the entire city was nothing but a pile of rubble.

Stalin's betrayal

Rose placed blame squarely on Joseph Stalin, whose half a million Red Army soldiers halted their advance on the east bank of the Vistula and passively watched the city burn. "Stalin not only did not lift a finger to help the civilians here in Warsaw," the ambassador said. "He prevented everyone else from helping too, refusing the Allies use of airfields for planes carrying aid." He argued that Stalin deliberately allowed the Nazis to destroy the Polish resistance and kill patriots, only later entering to impose nearly half a century of communist rule.

A lesson for today

The ambassador then turned his history into an explicit geopolitical message. He warned that if Adolf Hitler and Joseph Stalin could not conquer Poland, no present-day adversary can succeed. He underscored that Poland can be invaded, occupied, even captured, but never surrenders. "Poland did not surrender then and will not surrender now," Rose said, linking the 1944 sacrifice to the current security context.

If Adolf Hitler and Joseph Stalin could not conquer Poland, neither can they. Poland may be invaded, Poland may be occupied, even captured, but Poland never surrenders. Poland did not surrender then and will not surrender now.

From tribute to inspiration

Rose conveyed the homage of President Trump and the American people. He spoke of the unbreakable spirit of the Polish people and the heroes of the uprising, saying their example inspires all who value freedom and gives strength to continually fight for liberty. He ended his recording with two words in Polish: "Cześć bohaterom" (Honour to the heroes).

President Donald Trump and the American people — on this day we pay tribute and remember the extraordinary sacrifice, the extraordinary, unbreakable spirit of the Polish people and the heroes of the Warsaw Uprising.

A city rebuilt

Warsaw rose from the rubble to become a modern city, but the uprising remains a defining symbol of resistance. Rose's message used the 1944 tragedy to underscore that current threats will meet the same unyielding will.