From Poland’s Gazeta Wyborcza, here’s an in-depth explanation of why the Bush Administration’s negotiations with that nation on the U.S. anti-missile shield have gone so terribly wrong – and an inside look at how the White House managed to turn relations with one of our staunchest allies sour.
“The Americans don’t understand how much everything has changed since the 1990s. Even Americans who were against the war don’t understand to what extent Iraq has weakened both the image and the actual influence of the United States. Even U.S. experts on our region fail to fully appreciate the fact that after Abu Ghraib and Guantanamo, not only the French and the Germans, but also the Poles stopped automatically associating every American action in the world with democracy and human rights.”
“Polish politicians have to take public opinion into account. Yes, supporting the U.S. in Iraq has (temporarily) advanced Warsaw into the first league of European politics. But during 2005-2006, what Poles saw in Iraq was not advancement, but chaos, as our businesses fled the country and the attacks killed our soldiers. Poles began to seriously wonder whether French President Jacques Chirac – although arrogant – was right when he advised the Poles to “sit down and shut up” on the matter of Iraq.
On the ham-handed U.S. negotiating tactics:
“Internal fighting, and sometimes simply a lack of coordination, was visible not only during talks with Warsaw, but also with Prague. The Czech government is amenable to the idea of the shield, but its decision to host American ground radar on Czech territory has little chance of being ratified by the Czech Parliament. Several months ago, some U.S. diplomats were energetically trying to persuade the leaders of tiny Czech parties to support the shield. At the same time, another branch of the State Department published a report about world corruption that chastised these same leaders.”
On the differences among Poles, Bosacki writes:
“Foreign Minister Sikorski was of the opinion that the shield is advantageous for Poland, provided that the Americans add something to their offer – for example, Patriot missiles. But both Kaczynski brothers [the former Prime Minister and the-then and current President] saw the situation in a different light: if we can get something from Americans, fine, but if not, we should take the deal anyway, since it ties Poland more tightly to the U.S., which is in itself of inestimable value.”
As far as whether Poland has made a mistake by not accepting America’s terms, Bosacki writes:
“Despite all the criticisms of the Kaczynski brothers, I think that fundamentally, they’re right. The shield is, all things considered, beneficial to Poland, since the main strategic ally of Warsaw must be Washington. There is no alternative.”
By Marcin Bosacki
Translated By Halszka Czarnocka
July 13, 2008
Poland – Gazeta Wyborcza – Original Article (Polish)
Anti-missile shield negotiations are a symbol of the decline of American power and attractiveness under the administration of George W. Bush. But they are also a painful lesson about how we should not conduct our diplomacy.
During the next few days, talks about the rules under which Poland is to host elements of the American missile shield will probably crumble. Even if that doesn’t happen, they will at best bring about a forced compromise, which won’t succeed in drying the ocean of bad blood that has been spilled between Washington and Warsaw. How has it come to this?
Let’s go back to the very beginning of the talks. It’s the morning of December 7, 2005. Donald Rumsfeld, the powerful U.S. Defense Secretary, is receiving the Kazimierz Marcinkiewicz’s cabinet’s freshly sworn-in Polish Defense Minister, Radek Sikorski. The sun is shining; both politicians are smiling to the photographers. Sikorski – in his blue tie and brand-name shirt with Windsor collar – is sporting a wide smile. Rumsfeld’s smile is forced, he is visibly tired; things in Iraq are going from bad to worse.
After a while they go into the Defense Secretary’s office and … Sikorski puts on Rumsfeld’s desk a list of Polish demands in exchange for possible hosting of an American anti-missile shield, including for the first time, the mention of Patriot missiles.
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