On 7th July 2008, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Poland, Radosław Sikorski, talked to Senator Barack Obama on the telephone, and on 8th July 2008 he met Senator John McCain at his election campaign headquarters in Arlington, Virginia.

        The conversation between Minister Sikorski and Senator Barack Obama, during which the latter spoke of Poland and Poles in warm and friendly terms, exceeded the previously arranged time frame. Senator B. Obama expressed his willingness to visit Poland next year, regardless of the presidential election results. Minister Sikorski thanked the Senator for his written reply to the Polish American Congress program survey . During the conversation, Senator B. Obama remarked on the important role played by the Independent Self-governing Trade Union ‘Solidarity’ in the history of Poland and the entire world and stressed that the Polish Solidarity movement was an important life experience for him.

        On Tuesday 8th July 2008, Minister Sikorski visited Senator John McCain’s election campaign headquarters. A meeting of over 30 minutes passed in a warm and friendly atmosphere.

        The politicians discussed topics related to security, including energy security, as well as the issue of installing elements of the Missile Defense System in Poland. The discussion encompassed the political situation in Eastern Europe, including the Russian Federation and Belarus. The politicians also talked about the situation in Georgia.

        Minister Sikorski thanked Senator McCain for his involvement in promoting democracy and his support for undertakings aimed at defending civil liberties. Senator John McCain declared his support for the plan to install elements of the Missile Defense System in Poland. Without questioning the position of the current administration, Senator John McCain stated that the agreement to be concluded should result in the actual strengthening of the security of both Poland and the United States, based on the reciprocity principle. 

Piotr Paszkowski
MFA Spokesman