Translated material
Holier than the Pope
Poland overdid it with American support
The international aggravation around Iraq, associated with new bombings of Iraqi targets by US and British aircraft, had an unexpected continuation in Eastern Europe. Statements by a high-ranking Polish official strained relations between Warsaw and Paris and almost led to a severance of diplomatic ties with Baghdad.Commenting on the bombing of Iraq, the chief adviser on international affairs to the Polish Prime Minister, Marek Nowakowski, noted that “there is no reason why we should not treat this action with understanding.” Calling the raids "a decisive gesture by the new US administration," he added: "We support this gesture because we are America's allies."
Hubert Vedrine, the foreign minister of France, which condemned the US-British raids, said in an interview with the LCI television news network that only two countries - Poland and Canada - supported the bombing of Iraq. Warsaw reacted extremely nervously: the Polish prime minister's press secretary announced that “Polish foreign policy is shaped by the Polish foreign minister, not the French one.” And the head of Polish diplomacy, Wladyslaw Bartoszewski, trying to soften the friction, said that “interpretations occurred as a result of a willful and harmful statement for the state by one of Mr. Prime Minister’s former close political employees, which is the private opinion of an analyst, and not the opinion of the government.”
The opinion of the Polish “analyst” was also heard in Iraq. Baghdad announced a “severance of trade contacts with Canada and Poland.” There were rumors about the suspension of diplomatic relations. Warsaw rushed to count Iraqi debts. More than $700 million was collected for loans and services. Baghdad does not dispute them, but does not want to talk about payment. In addition, according to recent reports, Iraq has decided to block the import of medicines and medical equipment from Poland.
The Polish Foreign Ministry has strongly spoken out in favor of continuing relations with Iraq and is making efforts to mitigate the conflict with Paris. Bartoszewski said: “France has been our friend since the times of Napoleon, and nothing has changed in this matter.”
Having started the whole mess, Novakovsky had no choice but to resign, which the prime minister accepted immediately. Even earlier, 42-year-old Nowakowski was a candidate for the post of ambassador to Lithuania, but his appointment was opposed by President Aleksander Kwasniewski. As it turned out, not without reason.