For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
July 17, 2002
Joint Statement by President George W. Bush and President Aleksander Kwasniewski
We reaffirm the deep friendship and vibrant alliance between the United
States and Poland. We are committed to freedom and democratic values,
which form the basis of a Europe whole, free, and at peace. As we
begin the 21st Century, all of Europe's peoples, for the first time in
history, have an opportunity to live in democracies, at peace with
themselves and their neighbors. The United States pays tribute to the
people of Poland, who contributed so much to bringing an end to
Europe's Cold War division and who led the way to the undivided Europe
now taking shape. Today, Poland and the United States are determined
to complete our task: to build the Transatlantic House of Freedom,
open to all of Europe's peoples and prepared to meet the global
challenges of the 21st Century. Both sides stress the paramount
importance of strong and vigilant Transatlantic links for a successful
response to the new challenges that we face.
We will meet the new challenges together. We must act decisively
to win the war against global terror. Polish forces serve alongside
United States forces in Operation Enduring Freedom. In November 2001,
President Kwasniewski invited leaders from Central, Eastern, and
Southern Europe to identify concrete steps to defeat terrorism. The
United States appreciates this initiative and welcomes follow-up
meetings. Poland and the United States believe that these efforts can
contribute significantly to controlling borders, cutting off terrorist
financing, stemming the smuggling of individuals and equipment for
terrorist purposes, and preventing bioterrorism.
In the face of terrorism and other new threats, NATO's traditional
commitment to collective defense must also be carried out in new ways.
We are determined to lead NATO's adaptation to meet the new threats we
face. NATO must develop improved capabilities and be able to respond,
rapidly and flexibly, to threats from wherever they arise. We are
determined to provide the resources needed to achieve strengthened
capabilities and want to work jointly with other Allies to this end.
As NATO adapts, the United States and Poland are transforming their
militaries to make them as efficient, mobile, and well-equipped as
possible. The United States and Poland have agreed to expand
cooperation between our armed services both to deepen our
military-to-military relations, and in particular to promote needed
transformation in our defense. We hope this enhanced cooperation can
be a model for activities with other Allies.
We look forward to welcoming new members to the NATO Alliance. The
enlargement of NATO has already extended security on the European
continent and will continue. At its Prague Summit, NATO will extend
invitations to those European democracies ready to share in the
responsibilities of NATO membership, and the United States and Poland
have agreed on the desirability of a broad round of enlargement. The
states aspiring to join NATO have worked hard to institute reforms,
solidify the rule of law, and leave no doubt about the strength of
their democratic institutions. Reforms must continue even after
membership, just as Poland has continued its reforms since joining NATO
in 1999.
We welcome NATO's new relationship with Russia. The NATO-Russia
Council has great potential for NATO members and Russia to build common
security against common threats, especially in combating proliferation
of weapons of mass destruction and terrorism. We also welcome an
improved relationship between NATO and Ukraine. The United States and
Poland share an interest in encouraging the aspirations of the people
of Ukraine to prepare for a future in Europe. We agreed to work
together to support Ukraine's efforts to implement needed economic and
democratic reforms. Our two nations urge Belarus to join its neighbors
in seeking a democratic and free market future.
Accession to the European Union is essential for Poland's future
economic growth, and benefits our bilateral relations as well as the
trans-Atlantic relationship. The United States and Poland welcome the
impending enlargement of the European Union as another signal of the
deep roots across the European continent of free market principles and
open societies. We seek stronger ties between the European Union and
NATO. The prospects for overcoming the most serious challenges of the
day are enhanced significantly when NATO and the EU cooperate in
achieving common solutions.
The Polish-American economic partnership contributes to Poland's
ability to realize its full potential as a future EU member state, and
increases employment and high technology growth opportunities in
Poland. We believe that Poland's aspirations to play a full role
within the EU is fully compatible with its desire to remain a strong
Transatlantic partner of the United States. Poland's continued growth
and prosperity depend on a welcoming, predictable investment climate,
and we have established an Economic/Commercial Dialogue to enhance our
trade and investment relationship and to address specific issues of
mutual concern. Commerce Secretary Evans hopes to visit Poland in 2003
as part of our overall effort to enhance our bilateral relations.
We welcome the contribution of the strong Polish-American community
to building ties between our nations. For over 200 years the United
States has been a home and a land of hope for generations of Poles
searching for the American dream of liberty, freedom, justice, and
prosperity. Today, their task is not only that of linking our two
great democracies, but also one of global dimensions, to which Poles
and Americans devote their energy in the name of the common values that
Polish Americans have done so much to develop.
The United States and Poland have worked closely and productively,
including with Jewish communities in both countries, to promote
tolerance. We express satisfaction about the efforts made to preserve
memories of the Holocaust and support initiatives to expand education
on the history of the Shoah. We renew our commitment to preserve and
protect significant cultural heritage of mutual interest, and commend
the progress achieved in this area through cooperation between Polish
central and local institutions and U.S. public and private
institutions.
The friendship between the United States and Poland is strong and
enduring. We are united by ties of heritage, family, and faith.
Bilateral relations between the United States and Poland are excellent,
and we will work to strengthen those ties. Our common interests
reinforce our relationship, and we reaffirm today our determination to
work more closely as friends and allies in the future.
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