Prime minister: Józef Cyrankiewicz
First Secretary of the Polisch United Workers' Party (PZPR): W³adys³aw Gomu³ka
Gomu³ka initially very popular for his reforms and seeking a "Polish way to socialism", he gradually softened his opposition to Soviet pressures. In the 1960s he supported persecution of the Roman Catholic Church and some party intellectuals. He took part in the Warsaw Pact intervention in Czechoslovakia in 1968. At that time he was also responsible for persecuting students and intelligentsia as well as toughening censorship of the media. In 1968 he incited the anti-Semitic propaganda campaign that was one of the outcomes of the Soviet bloc opposition to the Six-Day War.
Poland was member of Warsaw Pact. Polish forces were utilized during the 1968 Prague Spring when Warsaw Pact forces invaded Czechoslovakia to overthrow the reform movement that was being led by Alexander Dubèek's government. Apart of 23 Soviet Army divisions also two Polish divisions , one Hungarian along with one Bulgarian brigade were taking part in the invasion.

Poland selected to the operation in Czechoslovakia the Second Army led by General F. Siwicki. It was entailed in the first group of Army „North” led by General I. Pavlovski. The tasks of the Second Army were to co- operate with the Red Army, the purpose being obtaining in military sense the northern part of Czechoslovakia and blockading the CzAL revolutionary forces staying in that region. The priority was to oppose to any the resistance’s trials and diversion’s acts. In the course of the first resolutions there appeared in Czechoslovakia the 10. and 11. Panzer Divisions, and the 4. Mechanised Division was expected to stay in reserve, but in fact it also came in on 25 August. There were established 13 commands of garrisons, the purpose being fulfilling the occupant’s tasks. Altogether in the invasion there participated about 24 thousands soldiers of The Folk Polish Army equipped in 643 tanks, 566 panzer transporters, 450 artillery pieces, 4 thousands of cars. From the political point of view, the propaganda said that we were to oppose against the turning out counterrevolution, and what is more a possible attack of the hordes of fascists from the Federal Republic of Germany the aim being the Imperialists could again surround Poland. At first, the Polish soldiers coming to Prague were treated as traitors and there appeared slogans like „Build the socialism by yourself”. However soon, the relations between the Polish troops and the local authorities and the community improved because of the high discipline within the „red caps”’ Polish forces, their caring for a lack of any incidents directing against the local community. In the general board of the Polish parachutists division there was proceeded the register of losses connected with the national market and with individual citizens of Czechoslovakia. However, there remained a cool distance inside the mutual contacts. The Czechs considered that the Polish troops had stifled the Prague’s Spring in a brutal way. The same opinion was shared by the majority of Polish people. There were also cases when the both sides tried to practice some trade exchanges between, which by the army’s orders were to be found out and restricted by the special Polish Political Apparatus 72. The Polish forces were ideologically educated in order to understand their mission with accordance to the Political Bureau’s credo as bringing help towards the real Czechoslovakian patriots. There was widely exposed the notion of the Polish brotherhood of ideas with the USSR. Oddly enough, the Polish parachutists during the staying in Czechoslovakia participated in visiting cultural places like museums and visited children in Czechoslovakian schools, the reason being a propaganda effect.