Self-Defence of the Republic of Poland (Samoobrona Rzeczpospolitej Polskiej, SRP) was a Polish agrarian populist party led by Andrzej Lepper. It entered the Sejm in 2001 and joined a governing coalition with Law and Justice in 2006-2007, with Lepper serving as deputy prime minister and agriculture minister. The party collapsed electorally in 2007, and Lepper died in 2011.

Samoobrona is relevant to Russian influence operations chiefly through Mateusz Piskorski, a Samoobrona member of the Sejm from 2005 to 2007. In 2015 he founded the Zmiana (Change) party, telling Sputnik its aim was to rebuild relations with Russia. Poland’s Internal Security Agency detained him in May 2016; he was indicted in 2018 on charges of espionage on behalf of Russian and Chinese intelligence. He was released on bail in May 2019 after three years in pretrial detention, and as of January 2026 his classified trial had produced no verdict. Charged is not convicted.

Sources

• Notes from Poland. “Polish Far-Right Leader Braun Names Man on Trial for Russian Espionage as Election Candidate.” January 7, 2026.

Summary entry. A fuller, document-based profile is in preparation.