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WARSAW, Poland — Polish President Lech Kaczynski, who died Saturday in a plane crash in Russia, was a one-time anti-communist activist who teamed up with his twin brother to take his country in a nationalist, conservative direction. His opponents, however, viewed him as narrow-minded, provincial and overzealous in his drive to cleanse the country of the influence of former communists. And he drew criticism from human rights groups for trying to stop a gay-rights parade through Poland's capital. Kaczynski was a firm friend of Poland's Jewish community, which has enjoyed a revival in recent years after it was nearly wiped...

US soldiers to come under Polish command in Afghanistan 15.03.2010 07:52 Around 1000 U.S. soldiers from the elite 101 Airborne Division will strengthen the Polish contingent in the Ghazni province, Afghanistan. The Americans will be subordinate to Polish command, Gazeta Wyborcza reveals, so the two nations will not be acting as two independent units. The Polish contingent is also about to be extended from 2,200 to 2.600 soldiers, meaning coalition forces in Ghazni will rise to 3,600 with the addition of US troops.

Afghanistan: Poland Should Remain ‘Until the End’ – Rzeczpospolita, Poland Posted by WILLIAM KERN in International, Media, Miscellaneous, Places, Politics, War. Dec 8th, 2009 | Comments Continuing with our coverage of NATO reaction to President Obama’s Afghanistan troop surge, this article from Poland’s Rceczpospolita demonstrates more determination to continue to assist the United States than we’ve seen from newspapers in any other U.S. ally – barring, perhaps, Great Britain. But along with a staunch statement in support for the Alliance, the article also contains a warning to all of America’s friends. For Rzeczpospolita, Piotr Gillert writes on part: “As stated...

Twenty first rifles leave for Afghanistan 01.10.2009 08:05 The sixth rotation of Polish forces in Afghanistan has begun with the departure of the 21st Podhale Rifles Brigade. The brigade left the south-eastern town of Rzeszow for its mission in Afghanistan, Tuesday afternoon. At an official departure ceremony, representatives from Poland’s Ministry of Defence and army officers were in attendance. The brigade are taking part in the sixth rotation of Polish forces in Afghanistan, and numbers 1200 soldiers, who will come back to Poland in six months’ time. The highlander soldiers have been in training since November last year for Poland’s...

Poland and the Czech Republic, which only shed Moscow's yoke 20 years ago, had hoped that the missile shield would provide tangible, if symbolic, evidence of the United States' commitment to their interests and the defence of the region. Now deprived of that, many in Central Europe fear that Russia's influence in the region will go unchecked. This has rekindled latent fears across Central Europe that its security has been sacrificed at the altar of great power politics.

For the Czech prime minister Jan Fischer, the news came in a call hastily placed by President Barack Obama, shortly after midnight on Thursday in Prague. In Warsaw, his Polish counterpart Donald Tusk initially declined to answer the phone from the White House - as he guessed the purpose, from the unusual timing, and wanted to prepare a response. Mr Obama last week unveiled the most dramatic national security reversal of his presidency by scrapping his predecessor George W Bush's planned anti-ballistic missile shield in eastern Europe. With this volte face, the Obama administration has brought the curtain firmly down...

Scrapping of U.S. missile defense plans hands big victory to Russia's new czar. Was it only April? There was President Barack Obama, speaking (as is his wont) in Prague, about the Iranian nuclear program and ballistic missile capability, and saluting America's plucky allies: "The Czech Republic and Poland have been courageous in agreeing to host a defense against these missiles," he declared. "As long as the threat from Iran persists, we will go forward with a missile defense system that is cost-effective and proven." On Thursday, the administration scrapped its missile defense plans for Eastern Europe. The "courageous" Czechs and...

It was the worst thing that the American government could do. This decision was announced on 17 September, when Poland was commemorating the 70th anniversary of the Soviet Invasion Day, when the Soviet Union allied with Nazis and stabbed our country in the back. This was an effect of the Nazi- Soviet Pact that was signed on 28 August in Moscow. After this day, all dreams about resisting Hitler's invasion perished -- two evil empires combined their powers to destroy our freedom and sovereignty. At the same day, 70 years later, Obama bowed to the Kremlin. It was something that...

The gist of the article is this: Obama's line of reasoning may be off but the outcome is still useful from an isolationist perspective. Isolationist do not want USA in Poland or anywhere else for that matter. Then we argue that, if you have to have an ally with someone, may as well make it Russia, because at least they fight. Has a cool picture (from Wikimedia) of a bunch of Russian soldiers at Stalingrad with Poposhovs.

Polish and Czech newspapers call Obama's plan treason.

The next 100 years George Friedman Published 27 August 2009 Japan and Turkey form an alliance to attack the US. Poland becomes America’s closest ally. Mexico makes a bid for global supremacy, and a third world war takes place in space. Sounds strange? It could all happen. . . In 1492, Columbus sailed west. In 1991, the Soviet Union collapsed. These two events bracketed the European age. Once, Mayans lived unaware that there were Mongols, who were unaware there were Zulus. From the 15th century onwards, European powers collectively overwhelmed the world, creating the first truly global geopolitical system in...

Poland says hopes U.S. will not let it down on shield Sun Mar 22, 2009 7:43pm IST BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Poland said on Sunday it hoped the new U.S. administration would not abandon plans to station a missile defence system on its territory. President Barack Obama's administration is reviewing U.S. security policy, including the missile shield plan. This has prompted speculation he might shelve a project that has angered Moscow, with which Washington wants to mend ties. Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski said Poland had taken "something of a political risk" in signing an agreement with the Bush adminstration to...

The Polish government plans to strengthen Poland's military contingent in Afghanistan this spring, Defense Minister Bogdan Klich said on Wednesday. "We have already started work on a related motion to the president," the minister was quoted as saying by Polish news agency PAP. An additional 400 soldiers will be deployed in Afghanistan, where Poland commands the province of Ghazni, reported daily newspaper Gazeta Wyborcza. Poland currently has 1,600 soldiers in that country. According to the defense minister, the increase could be possible at the turn of May and June when the 5th shift of Polish soldiers would leave for Afghanistan....

Poland wants enhanced military commitment from US By VANESSA GERA WARSAW, Poland (AP) — Poland expects the United States to carry through with its promises of deeper military cooperation even if President Barack Obama scraps plans for a missile defense base in Poland, the foreign minister said Friday. The comments came as Obama's administration is still deciding whether to continue a Bush-backed plan for a missile defense shield in Europe, a controversial project that has enraged Russia and created fears across Europe of a new Cold War. Washington reached a deal with Poland last summer to put missile defense interceptors...

Taliban release tape of Polish engineer’s death Created: 08.02.2009 19:39 A video tape showing the last moments of the Polish captive in Pakistan, killed on Saturday by the Taliban, has been handed into the Reuters office in the north western town of Dera Ismail Khan. The tape shows two men cutting off the head of Piotr Stanczak, a Polish engineer who was kidnapped by the Taliban last September in the Attock region, near the border with Afghanistan. A statement by the Taliban in Pakistan on Saturday said that they would not be delivering the body of the engineer unless certain...

Polish Community Shocked by Treatment of Polish Citizens at U.S. Border Nowy Dziennik, News Report, Ewa Kern-Jedrychowska, Posted: Dec 30, 2008 Review it on NewsTrust Editor's note: The following excerpt is from Feetin2Worlds.org, where the entire commentary is posted. This story also appeared in Boston's ethnicnewz.org. This year ends with an unpleasant intervention by PolandÂ’s diplomatic staff at the U.S. Department of State and the U.S. Embassy in Warsaw. At issue are recent cases of Poles who were denied entry to the U.S. at the New York area airports. While no one questions the right of the U.S to bar...

Guantanamo prisoners to be sent to Poland? Created: 24.12.2008 09:15 Poland would be willing to take prisoners from Guantanamo detention camp, after the new Obama administration closes it down. Some prisoners from Guantanamo are likely to be kept in European countries, including Poland. According to the head of the Parliamentary Committee for Foreign Affairs, Krzysztof Lisek of the ruling Civic Platform, there are no political obstacles to put such a plan into practice. “If our ally submitted a request like that, we wouldn’t refuse,” Lisek said. “But we do know the situation of the Polish penitentiary system, the cramped conditions...

Bush keeps Poland off visa list Nicholas Kralev Friday, October 17, 2008 President Bush angered staunch ally Poland Friday by excluding it from a group of newcomers to a program that allows citizens of certain countries to visit the United States without entry visas. At a Rose Garden ceremony, Mr. Bush announced rescinding visa requirements for six other former communist countries -- Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary, the Czech Republic and Slovakia -- as well as South Korea, effective in about a month. "For years, the leaders of these nations have explained to me how frustrating it is for their citizens...

Poland ended its military presence in Iraq Saturday with a ceremony for its approximately 900 troops at Camp Echo, Qadasiyah Province.The Polish army commanded Multi-National Division - Center South, which operated throughout Qadasiyah Province.Polish forces completed 10 rotations in Iraq, which ended October 1, and commanded 10 national contingents, including Armenia, Latvia, Mongolia, Poland, Romania, Ukraine, Bosnia and Herzegovina.  To the memory and honor of the Polish soldiers who fought, worked and lost their lives in Iraq, 2003-2008   It  was in the first days of the operation Iraqi Freedom, 2003.  Despite numerous attempts of the British forces to take a startegic...

Poland ended its military presence in Iraq Saturday with a ceremony for its approximately 900 troops at Camp Echo, Qadasiyah Province.