USA-POLAND: A NOT SO SPECIAL RELATIONSHIP
(ANY MORE)
Professor Bohdan Szklarski, a professor at the American Studies Center at the University of Warsaw and a lecturer in Collegium Civitas talks to Witold Żygulski. Prof. Bohdan Szklarski
F
14
or many years Poland boasted about the special character of its relations with the U.S.; what is left of this today? The answer has to be twofold. One issue concerns the Polish narrative, how the authorities in Warsaw perceived relations with the US, and the other is how these matters were perceived in Washington. The Polish view was that we were a vital ally for the U.S., both militarily and politically; the American view was that we could be a useful ally in particular political games as well as a valued counterparty to multi-billion dollar arms deals. The Polish view of the alliance with the U.S. is well illustrated by several old caricatures drawn by Andrzej Mleczko [a popular Polish satirical cartoonist]; in one, a Polish boxer is trying on a giant glove, larger than himself; in another, an American soldier is carrying a flag whose tiny element is the Polish flag, carried by an equally tiny Polish soldier. However, the authorities in Warsaw, especially in the last years of the so-called United Right governments, consistently
promoted a narrative of strategic partnership, in fact being at best a client of the US. What is worse, at some point it was decided that the Polish little ship, which so far has been following the great American battleship, can sail on its own, in the same direction, but without looking at the hegemon’s ship. Donald Trump’s administration, so well liked in Warsaw, wanted Poland to be America’s mouthpiece in the European Union, to buy American military equipment, and to support the U.S. in military operations around the world, as exemplified by the Polish military presence in Afghanistan or Iraq. Today, however, the U.S. involvement in both countries especially with the Taliban returning to power in Afghanistan - is at least questionable. Poland’s role in the European Union, in turn, has diminished to an extraordinary degree, due to a series of conflicts with the Polish government over the rule of law, media freedom and other systemic issues. The same issues that the Trump administration treated instrumentally, while Joe Biden’s team recognizes as the basis of shared democratic values.
MANIFEST SUPPORT FOR TRUMP DURING THE PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION, BEHAVIORS VISIBLE TO THE NAKED EYE, SUCH AS THE MUCH-DELAYED CONGRATULATIONS TO BIDEN BY POLISH PRESIDENT ANDRZEJ DUDA, WERE CERTAINLY NOTICED IN WASHINGTON
To what extent does the Polish government, which previously bet heavily on Donald Trump, now count with Biden’s new policy? Manifest support for Trump during the presidential election, behaviors visible to the naked eye, such as the much-delayed congratulations to Biden by Polish President Andrzej Duda, were certainly noticed in Washington. This is evidenced by the fact that the new American president met with Duda only once, on the occasion of the Baltic Leaders Summit, in the corridor, without any diplomatic setting due to a “strategic ally”. We simply ceased to be important, not because of any dislike of the new administration, but because of the many political mistakes we made, both in relations with the United States and with the European Union. Their result has been a loss of position, best demonstrated by the cardinal change in U.S. policy toward the Russian-German Nord Stream 2 pipeline. Joe Biden made a deal with Angela Merkel and cancelled all sanctions against the companies carrying out this investment, without considering the position of Poland,
Autumn 2021
The Warsaw Voice
