Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk is scheduled to meet with President Bush on March 10 during his first official visit to the U.S. Although high-level decisions are unlikely to be reached, this trip will be crucial for shaping the image and expectations of Poland's new government vis-à-vis America.
Iraq and Afghanistan
Poland plans to withdraw its remaining 900 soldiers from Iraq by the end of this year. In the face of domestic opposition and few political or economic payoffs, this decision is not a surprise to anyone and has been accepted by the Pentagon. However, Poland clearly wants to compensate for this drawdown by bolstering its engagement in Afghanistan. Currently there are 1,200 Polish troops there and their number will soon rise to 1,600. The position Tusk needs to convey to Bush is two-fold: Poland is committed to close military cooperation with America, but wants it firmly placed in the NATO context. Afghanistan cannot be turned into another coalition of the willing; it has to remain a joint NATO effort. With that message Poland can also help the U.S. during the upcoming Bucharest summit unite the allies whose commitment to the Afghanistan mission has been sagging.
Visas
Although Poland has been in the EU for almost 4 years now, the U.S. still discriminates among the EU countries in terms of visa waver. Maintaining the arduous tourist visa requirement for Poles seems outdated, given that they have just been allowed to travel visa-free to Canada and joined the Schengen zone. The U.S. said it would drop visas for countries where fewer than 10 percent of applications are denied - in Poland it is still over 20. Arguably, the admittance criteria are too strict and that is something Prime Minister Tusk can raise with President Bush. But more importantly he needs to push for a change of the new EU countries' image in the U.S. No crowds of destitute Central Europeans are waiting at the gates to take away American jobs and the visa waiver issue needs to be decoupled from the ongoing immigration debate.
Missile defense shield
This is surely going to be the hottest topic of discussion. During a recent visit to Washington Polish Foreign Minister Radek Sikorski announced jointly with Condoleezza Rice that Poland is ready, in principle, to proceed with the project. But the new Polish government is determined to gain concrete U.S. commitments to improving Polish defense systems in exchange for hosting the shield. So far all the Americans offered were general declarations of willingness to help modernize the Polish military - and that's not enough. It is unreasonable to expect that a full agreement on such a sensitive issue will be reached during this one visit or even under the current U.S. administration. The shield needs to find financial backing in Congress next year, military experts must negotiate a myriad of technical details, and the broader NATO context of this installation has to be established. What matters now is that Tusk reaffirms Poland's basic readiness to cooperate but also communicates that this cooperation cannot be taken for granted.
To a large extent, it will be a getting-to-know-you visit. Tusk's key task in Washington is to build name recognition for himself and draw attention to the issues important to Poland, especially in the midst of the U.S. election year. He needs to reassert the importance of Poland in transatlantic relations as an equal NATO and EU partner - and an expectation to be treated like one.
Anna Nadgrodkiewicz is a graduate of Georgetown University's School of Foreign Service currently residing in Washington DC.
Related Materials from the Atlantic Community:
- Anna Nadgrodkiewicz: Expect More Coalition Building After Polish Elections
- Wess Mitchell: Missile Defense: Poland Has Less Room to Maneuver
- Alexander Bernhard Bitter: Europe and Missile Defense: A Risky Nap
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