Poland Is Rewarded

[Annie]

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/10/p...00&en=1c1ac81b7d19aaae&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt

President Bush told President Aleksander Kwasniewski of Poland on Wednesday that he would ask Congress for $100 million to modernize the Polish military, part of a program of support for a new NATO ally that has more than 2,000 soldiers in Iraq...

...Mr. Kwasniewski has been among the strongest supporters of Mr. Bush's decision to invade Iraq, and there are 2,400 Polish soldiers in Iraq, leading a 5,000-strong multinational division in the central and southern parts of the country. About 800 Polish soldiers are to leave this month.

In the interview, Mr. Kwasniewski, who leaves office in December, also said he had advised Mr. Bush not to act unilaterally against Iran in the current standoff over its nuclear program.

"My advice was simple," he said, sipping tea in Blair House, across the street from the White House, after his lunch with Mr. Bush. "I am absolutely against taking action by one side only. I said this," he said, and Mr. Bush, he said, seemed to agree.

"This must be one of the main topics when the president comes to Europe," he said, speaking of Mr. Bush's trip, planned for two weeks from now...

 

[insein]

thats all well and good George but make sure it comes out of some other country's foreign aid fund that hasnt been so kind to us, such as say France or Germany. I dont want to be stuck with the bill to modernize the Polish Army. We cant even get some of our military divisions up to snuff.

Bottomline, im glad they are rewarded but dont spend anymore moeny rewarding them. Just give them someone elses allowance.

 

[Annie]

thats all well and good George but make sure it comes out of some other country's foreign aid fund that hasnt been so kind to us, such as say France or Germany. I dont want to be stuck with the bill to modernize the Polish Army. We cant even get some of our military divisions up to snuff.

Bottomline, im glad they are rewarded but dont spend anymore moeny rewarding them. Just give them someone elses allowance.

Bottom line, they want to keep the coalition together. I say reward our friends, penalize our enemies-monetarily, by trade, and by diplomacy. IMO

 

[Annie]

Bottom line, they want to keep the coalition together. I say reward our friends, penalize our enemies-monetarily, by trade, and by diplomacy. IMO

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story2&u=/ap/20050210/ap_on_go_pr_wh/bush

President Bush (news - web sites) is asking Congress to set up a $400 million fund to reward nations that have taken political and economic risks to join U.S.-led coalitions in Iraq (news - web sites) and Afghanistan (news - web sites).

The White House announced the fund, dubbed the "solidarity initiative," after Bush's meeting Wednesday with Aleksander Kwasniewski, the president of Poland, a nation that is to receive one-fourth of the money.

The $400 million request is part of the $80 billion supplemental war funding request Bush will send to Congress next week.

"Poland has been a fantastic ally because the president and the people of Poland love freedom," Bush said during his Oval Office meeting with Kwasniewski, a staunch ally in the Iraq war. "I know the people of your country must have been thrilled when the millions of people went to the polls" in Iraq.

Of course, the Dems are falling all over themselves, with help from AP:

Democratic Sen. Joseph Biden (news, bio, voting record), D-Del., the ranking minority member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, says the fund is indicative of the administration's inability to attract more well-to-do nations to the coalition at the start of the conflict.

"It's kind of a shame," he said in a telephone interview. "The reason we're having to do this is that we never reached out to those who have the ability and capacity to do this to begin with."

He called the countries in the U.S.-led coalition in Iraq "courageous" but said the administration had no choice but to offer them help because their societies and national budgets can't afford the cost of being in Iraq for extended periods of time.

Poland has taken command of a multinational security force in central Iraq that currently includes about 6,000 troops — among them more than 2,400 Polish soldiers. Kwasniewski told reporters outside the White House that a reduction this month will leave Poland with 1,700 troops in Iraq, but he said the 700 other troops would remain ready in Poland to be immediately deployed to Iraq if needed.

Administration officials declined to say which other nations would benefit from the fund, partly designed to reward allies and coax them to stay in the U.S.-led coalition in Iraq. Spain, Singapore, Nicaragua, New Zealand, Thailand, Philippines, Norway and Honduras have left the coalition.

One administration official said the fund was designed to provide help to Eastern European nations, such as Ukraine, Hungary, Romania and the Baltic states. Bush is meeting March 9 at the White House with Traian Basescu, the president of Romania, which has an estimated 700 troops in Iraq.

"These funds ... reflect the principle that an investment in a partner in freedom today will help ensure that America will stand united with stronger partners in the future," White House press secretary Scott McClellan said in a statement. "This assistance will support nations that have developed troops in Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as other partners promoting freedom around the world."

Kwasniewski declined to answer a question about whether the Polish people felt they had been adequately rewarded for their help in the U.S.-led coalition in Iraq.

"If Iraq finally will be an independent, democratic state, that's the highest reward we can expect," Kwasniewski told reporters outside the White House.

In the Ukraine, Poland's neighbor, newly elected President Viktor Yushchenko has said that he would not reverse outgoing President Leonid Kuchma's decision to withdraw Ukraine's estimated 1,650 troops in Iraq by the end of June. However, no final decision about Ukrainian troops has been announced. That was a topic of Vice President Dick Cheney (news - web sites)'s meeting with Yushchenko last month in Krakow.

Since Iraq's Jan. 30 elections, the administration has focused intently on attracting new support for Iraq.

Bush has spoken by phone with more than a dozen members of the coalition that have from 300 to several thousand troops in Iraq. On Wednesday, he called Anders Fogh Rasmussen, the prime minister of Denmark, which has about 500 troops in Iraq. "They agreed on the importance of continuing international support in Iraq while working to train and equip Iraqis to assume greater responsibility and ultimately provide for their own security," McClellan said.

NATO (news - web sites) Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer has said he has appealed to all 26 allied nations to contribute more troops to help meet a goal of turning out 1,000 Iraqi security officers a year. He said it was his goal to have pledges of help from all nations by the time Bush visits Europe later this month.

 

[onedomino]

The United Kingdom, perhaps not surprisingly, has the most troops in Iraq among the non-U.S. allies – nearly 8,800 as of mid-January. South Korea came in second, at 3,500, followed closely by Italy, with about 3,100 troops deployed.

Poland came in fourth, with 2,500 troops, although it has plans to reduce that number to 1,700 this month and could pull out altogether by the end of the year.

Fifth was the Ukraine, with 1,600 troops, but it also could pull out all its troops this year. In sixth place, the Netherlands had 1,345 troops deployed but wants to pull out by the end of March.

Romania came in seventh, with 730, followed by Japan, about 550; Denmark, about 500; Bulgaria, about 485; Australia, about 400; El Salvador, 380; Georgia, 300; Mongolia, 180; Azerbaijan, about 150; Portugal, about 130; Latvia, about 120; the Czech Republic, about 110; Lithuania and Slovakia, 105 each; Albania, about 70; Estonia, 55; Armenia and Tonga, about 45 each; Macedonia, 33; Kazakhstan, about 30; Moldova, 12; and Norway, 10.

The grand total? About 24,000 troops. The U.S. contingent totals 150,000, give or take a few thousand.

The countries most notably absent from the list? Nicaragua, Spain, the Dominican Republic, Honduras, the Philippines, Thailand, New Zealand and Hungary all have pulled out.

Some countries were part of the coalition in the beginning but had next to nothing to offer, save a little moral support. Among them were Iceland, Palau and the Solomon Islands.

http://globalsecurity.org/org/news/2005/050207-iraq-coalition.htm (full text)

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[Hobbit]

Poland is a great example of what we've done right and what we're doing right in Iraq. During the Cold War, most of the left had conceded that the Soviet Union would always be around and that we should just stay out of their way. However, Reagan pushed Gorbechov to knock down the wall. Now that Poland's free, and much of its infastructure says, "Sponsered in part by the U.S." they have demostrated themselves as a loyal and valuable ally. They have the fourth largest military presense in Iraq following 1. The U.S. 2. Iraq and 3. The U.K.

 

[Comrade]

I agree about Poland. Remember that until they were placed under the thumb of the Germans and then the Soviets, the Polish had a stable, liberal Democracy and was allied with the other Democracies prior to WWII. Liberty is in their blood!

 

[taff]

How about moving your military from Germany and into Poland.Be a direct message to the Germans and also a long term help to the Poles.American forces could hold joint exercises then with the Poles to bring them upto scratch.

 

[Annie]

How about moving your military from Germany and into Poland.Be a direct message to the Germans and also a long term help to the Poles.American forces could hold joint exercises then with the Poles to bring them upto scratch.

Underway. http://www.sptimes.com/2004/02/10/Worldandnation/US_base_relocation_te.shtml

 

[taff]

Good News.The knock on effect will be enormous. We (The Brits) pulled out of Dortmund a few years ago, just north of Frankfurt and immidiatly lots of bars and restraunts had to close.If the bulk of the American forces in Germany pulls out it will be a massive blow to the Germans and an enormous lift to the eastern european countries.

 

[Annie]

Good News.The knock on effect will be enormous. We (The Brits) pulled out of Dortmund a few years ago, just north of Frankfurt and immidiatly lots of bars and restraunts had to close.If the bulk of the American forces in Germany pulls out it will be a massive blow to the Germans and an enormous lift to the eastern european countries.

Agreed. I figure we'll all be happier. I mean Germany's has not been pleased with the missiles even during the Cold War. Since then, they have allied with France. We will have bases somewhere and East makes more sense. The Eastern nations seem very happy to have the $ and good rapport.

 

[taff]

I have to be honest , as a European i do sometimes find the French and German attitudes embarressing. They often seem to me to be like an osterich with its head in the ground oblivious of the size 10 boot heading for its arse.But maybe its only when the size 10 hits it will pull its head out and take note of its dangerous surroundings.

 

[Johnney]

i think we should pull out forces out of germany period. hey the cold war is over, we no longer need to wtch the folda gap. they can tie their own shoes now. they are making friends (france). well at least a friend anyway. lets take it to someplace else now!

 

[theim]

Biden. And I thought for once we could just get a straight positive response from a Dem. "Democracy is good, BUT" ; "Aid to Poland is good, BUT"; and my all time favorite "We're glad Saddam Hussein is gone BUT we shouldn't have invaded Iraq!" (paraphrased)

 

[Johnney]

Biden. And I thought for once we could just get a straight positive response from a Dem. "Democracy is good, BUT" ; "Aid to Poland is good, BUT"; and my all time favorite "We're glad Saddam Hussein is gone BUT we shouldn't have invaded Iraq!" (paraphrased)

well they were probably not tired of asking him to step down like france was. seems like the popular saying right now from other countries. "hes gone, thats cool, but did we really have to do it this way?" wtf he wasnt packing anyway

 

[Comrade]

Underway. http://www.sptimes.com/2004/02/10/Worldandnation/US_base_relocation_te.shtml

That's sweeeet!

I read into the second post about one of Putin's opponents having been murdered... scary!

 

[Annie]

That's sweeeet!

I read into the second post about one of Putin's opponents having been murdered... scary!

Yep, and came pretty close to a repeat in Ukraine. KGB is alive and well.

 

[Comrade]

Yep, and came pretty close to a repeat in Ukraine. KGB is alive and well.

The Russians pronounced it Kah-Gay-Beh.

/random factoid

 

[theim]

The Russians pronounced it Kah-Gay-Beh.

/random factoid

I think that's how it sounds in German as well. But Kay-Jee-Bee rolls off the tounge more

 

[Comrade]

I think that's how it sounds in German as well. But Kay-Jee-Bee rolls off the tounge more

yeah, Like in: "I got the he-bee kay-gee-bees."