Obama vows to defend freedom in Europe, support democratic movements worldwide --- WARSAW — Surrounded by throngs celebrating Poland’s 25 years of democracy, President Obama on Wednesday pledged to uphold the United States’ longtime commitment to the defense of Eastern Europe against new threats, using the opportunity to deliver a resounding endorsement of democratic movements across the world. -- “Throughout history, the Polish people were abandoned by friends when you needed them most,” Obama said. “I have come to Warsaw today — on behalf of the United States, on behalf of the NATO Alliance — to reaffirm our unwavering commitment to Poland’s security.” -- Speaking at the “Freedom Day” event in a historic square by the Royal Castle, the president said he would use the full might of the American armed forces to protect Poland and other Eastern European allies, and he called out Russia as a threat to regional security and democracy. -- “Our free nations will stand united so that further Russian provocations will only mean more isolation and costs for Russia,” he said. “We refuse to allow the dark tactics of the 20th century to define the 21st.” -- The remarks were a startling reminder that even as Obama tries to turn the page on more than a decade of war and point U.S. foreign policy in a new direction, he is consumed by the challenges of predecessors from decades ago: namely, defending democracy in Europe. Even as he declares “the days of empires and sphere of influences are over,” he is still fighting an old superpower that is practicing the geopolitical warfare of the last century. -- On the second day of his European tour, Obama spoke at a moment of deep unrest. Russia’s annexation of Ukraine’s autonomous Crimea region and support for pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine have upended the widely held belief that territorial sovereignty was inviolable in the Europe of the 21st century. -- But what was striking about the speech, a centerpiece of Obama’s trip to Europe this week, was not just another commitment to regional security but his broader message about supporting the aspirations of democratic movements across the world. -- Obama did not describe, however, how his administration would further the cause of freedom across the world — a notoriously difficult challenge at the same time it is trying to make progress in other foreign policy areas, including counterterrorism and trade. -- “We stand together because we know that the spirit of Warsaw and Budapest and Prague and Berlin stretches to wherever the longing for freedom stirs in human hearts, whether in Minsk or Caracas, Damascus or Pyongyang,” Obama said. -- The president said this was especially clear in Ukraine, where he drew a direct line between the leaders of Poland’s democratic movement in the 1980s and those who protested the previous pro-Moscow government in Ukraine, calling them “the heirs of Solidarity — men and women like you who dared to challenge a bankrupt regime.” -- “Robbed by a corrupt regime, Ukrainians demanded a government that served them. Beaten and bloodied, they refused to yield,” Obama said. -- Earlier in the day, Obama met with Ukrainian President-elect Petro Poroshenko, who won the country’s May 25 presidential election, and said he represents a new future for Ukraine. Poroshenko, Obama said at the end of a bilateral meeting, “understands the aspirations and hopes of the Ukrainian people.” -- On Tuesday in Warsaw, Obama released a $1 billion proposal to bolster the U.S. military presence in the region in hopes of reassuring the Polish people and other Eastern Europeans that the United States remains committed to their common defense. - More, Zachary A. Goldfarb, Washingtonpost