Bringing defence back home: security imaginaries of Polish and German shift to territorial defence

This article examines how Poland and Germany, despite implementing structurally similar reforms in response to Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, articulate divergent cultural understandings of defence and security. Using the concept of security imaginaries – the shared meanings through which societies interpret international security – we compare two formations central to the return of territorial defence: Poland’s Territorial Defence Forces (TDF) and Germany’s Territorial Reserves and Homeland Security program (TR/HS). Through qualitative content analysis of their public communication, we analyse how these institutions construct narratives around identity, history, allies, threats, and defence practices. Our findings show that the TDF draw on heroic, resistance-based traditions rooted in Poland’s national-military mythos, while TR/HS reflect Germany’s post-heroic military culture and aversion to militarised nationalism. Both formations portray themselves as citizen-soldier forces bridging military and civilian spheres, yet they serve distinct symbolic functions: the TDF enact a frontline state identity, while TR/HS affirm Germany’s role as a NATO hub. This divergence does not preclude convergence, but suggests it unfolds through complementary, nationally embedded interpretations of security, underscoring the value of interpretive approaches for understanding how imaginaries shape defence practices within NATO and the EU.