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APRIL 2007 |
Volume II Issue 4 |
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April |
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Ambassador Victor Ashe |
Greetings from spring time Warsaw! The
sun is out and the flowers are beginning to
bloom.
Missile defense dominates much of the
discussion between the United States and
Poland. Assistant Secretary of State for
European Affairs, and former U.S. Ambassador
to Poland, Daniel Fried, was here to discuss
the issue with Polish government officials,
opposition leaders and the media. We
continue our outreach. I encourage you to
visit the Embassy’s continuously updated
informational
webpage on missile defense. |
Early last
month, my wife Joan and I, honored Polish
women in business with a reception at our
Residence in celebration of International
Women’s Day. The event served to recognize
the significant success that Polish women
have achieved.
The U.S. Senate recently passed legislation
sponsored by Senator Richard Lugar of
Indiana to establish a United States-Poland
Parliamentary Youth Exchange Program. This
initiative will create a new educational
exchange opportunity for American and Polish
youth.
The Embassy’s first Jan Nowak-Jezioranski
Public Service Award was presented recently
to Wladyslaw Bartoszewski. This award
recognizes a Pole who has made a significant
difference through his or her leadership and
commitment to public service. Professor
Bartoszewski embodies the virtues and ideals
that the Jan Nowak-Jezioranski Public
Service Award celebrates. This award is the
second of three annual awards the Embassy is
announcing this year. To learn more about
Jan Nowak-Jezioranski and Wladyslaw
Bartoszewski, please see below.
In April, the Embassy will welcome a variety
of cultural activities across Poland.
American Grammy-nominated jazz singer Karrin
Allyson will visit Poland for a short tour
April 1-3. She will perform two nights in
Warsaw and one in Poznan. American concert
pianist John Robilette will be here April
16-20, with concerts in Opole, Krakow, and
Warsaw. His Friday evening, April 20 concert
in Warsaw’s Lazienki Park at 7:00pm will be
part of a tribute to Ignacy Jan Paderewski,
an early 20th century Polish statesman and
pianist. We will pay tribute to Paderewski’s
contributions to Polish-American friendship
before the concert.
Wroclaw will host a poetry festival April
13-15, featuring an appearance by American
poet August Kleinzahler, who is one of the
featured poets in a new anthology of
American poets in Polish translation O
krok od nich. The book was published
with the help of an Embassy grant and the
Embassy has also obtained for the festival
films of the featured poets from the
collection at San Francisco State
University. The 3rd Warsaw Festival of
Artistic Photography, including exhibits and
lectures by American photographers, taking
place in 24 art galleries throughout Warsaw,
will run through April 22. For more
information on these and other cultural
activities, please contact the Embassy’s
Cultural Affairs Office.
General Henry Obering, Director of the U.S.
Missile Defense Agency, also visits in
April, and several Polish artists will visit
my Residence for a reception. I will also
participate in several Earth Day 2007 events
and participate in the annual March of the
Living on April 16 at the Auschwitz Birkenau
Nazi death camp. Many American and Israeli
youth will be there.
Finally, Joan and I wish you and your family
a happy Easter holiday!
Sincerely yours,
Victor Ashe
U.S. Ambassador to Poland |
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Embassy News |
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Brig. Gen. O’Reilly holds a
roundtable discussion with a
group of Polish security experts |
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U.S. Missile Defense Agency Deputy
Director Visits Poland |
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U.S.
Missile Defense Agency Deputy Director,
Brigadier General Patrick O’Reilly,
visited Poland March 28-29 to discuss
U.S. missile defense plans in Europe. In
addition to his meetings with senior
Polish government officials, Brig. Gen.
O’Reilly also met with the Foreign
Affairs Committee of the Polish Sejm and
held a roundtable discussion with a
group of leading Polish security experts
on the technical details of the proposed
European component of U.S. missile
defense.
more |
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U.S. Assistant Secretary of
State Fried and Ambassador Ashe |
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U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Daniel
Fried Discusses Missile Defense in
Warsaw |
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U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for
European and Eurasian Affairs, Daniel
Fried, visited Warsaw March 20-21.
Secretary Fried met with Polish Prime
Minister Jaroslaw Kaczynski, Foreign
Minister Anna Fotyga, and Minister of
Defense Aleksander Szczyglo to discuss
missile defense cooperation and other
bilateral issues. He also met with
opposition leaders to encourage their
support. On March 21, Secretary
Fried held a roundtable discussion at
the U.S. Embassy with Polish and
international journalists to discuss
U.S. missile defense plans.
more |
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Missile Defense |
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Op-Ed on Missile Defense by Ambassador
Ashe in
Newsweek Polska |
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The March
25 edition of Newsweek Polska
carried an op-ed on U.S. missile defense
plans by U.S. Ambassador to Poland,
Victor Ashe. “Missile defense is a
serious issue directly bearing upon the
national security of both our nations,
an issue transcending partisan politics
and superficial judgments. All of us –
governments, academics, journalists and
politicians – owe it to the public to
have a rational and fact-based
discussion on the merits of the
initiative,” wrote Ambassador Ashe. To
read the full text of the Ambassador’s
op-ed,
click here.
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Wladyslaw Bartoszewski Receives
the Jan Nowak-Jezioranski Public
Service Award |
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Wladyslaw Bartoszewski Receives the Jan
Nowak-Jezioranski Public Service Award |
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Wladyslaw
Bartoszewski is the first recipient of
the Jan Nowak-Jezioranski Public Service
Award sponsored by U.S. Embassy Warsaw.
The award, recognizing a Pole who has
made a significant difference through
his or her leadership and commitment to
public service, was presented to
Professor Bartoszewski at a reception
hosted in his honor by U.S. Ambassador
to Poland, Victor Ashe, on March 27.
“Professor Bartoszewski embodies the
virtues and ideals that the Jan
Nowak-Jezioranski Public Service Award
celebrates,” Ambassador Ashe said in
presenting the award. “While fighting
for others’ basic values of freedom,
democracy, and human rights, Professor
Bartoszewski repeatedly risked his own
freedom and life. Indeed, his entire
life has been committed to public
service for the benefit of Poland and
its people.” The Nowak-Jezioranski
Public Service Award is the second award
of three annual awards the Embassy is
announcing this year.
more |
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Maj Gen Weida and Under
Secretary of State of the Polish
Ministry of National Defense,
Kotas |
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Commander of U.S. Air Force Security
Assistance Center Visits Polish Air
Force |
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Major General John A. Weida, Commander
of the U.S. Air Force Security
Assistance Center (AFSAC), visited the
Polish Air Force March 21-25.
AFSAC promotes U.S. security assistance
and national security objectives by
building relationships with
international partners such as Poland.
General Weida also visited Krzesiny Air
Base near Poznan to meet with officials
in preparation for the arrival in Poland
of the next four Polish F-16 aircraft.
more |
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Ambassador Ashe with “Know
America” contest winners |
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Ambassador Ashe Congratulates “Know
America” Contest Winners |
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U.S. Ambassador to Poland, Victor Ashe,
and Mrs. Ashe, hosted 30 high school
students from across Poland who were
winners in this year’s edition of the
“Know America” contest, at a reception
at their Residence on March 22.
Ambassador Ashe gave certificates to
each of the 30 winners and handed out
sets of books awarded to five schools
with two or more students competing in
the competition finals.
more |
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Ambassador Ashe Hosts Commander
of Polish Land Forces |
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Ambassador Ashe Hosts Commander of
Polish Land Forces |
U.S.
Ambassador to Poland, Victor Ashe,
and Mrs. Ashe, hosted a luncheon on
March 19 at the Ambassador’s
Residence in honor of Lieutenant
General Waldemar Skrzypczak,
Commander of Polish Land Forces.
Other honored guests included
Colonel and Mrs. Krzysztof Król.
U.S. Embassy personnel and their
spouses, representing both the
Defense Attaché’s Office and the
Office of Defense Cooperation, also
attended.
more |
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General Pulaski |
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U.S. Senate Passes Resolution
Granting Honorary Posthumous
Citizenship to Casimir Pulaski |
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A resolution proclaiming Casimir
Pulaski to be an honorary citizen of
the United States posthumously was
passed in the U.S. Senate by
Unanimous Consent on March 19.
“Pulaski is a great symbol of the
Polish-American friendship,” said
U.S. Ambassador to Poland, Victor
Ashe. “And his spirit is a symbol of
Poland’s long history of political,
cultural and economic ties with the
United States.”
more |
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Senator Lugar |
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Senate Passes U.S.-Poland Youth Exchange
Bill |
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The U.S. Senate approved legislation on
March 15 to establish a United
States-Poland Parliamentary Youth
Exchange Program. U.S. Senator Dick
Lugar of Indiana introduced the bill
that would establish a program for
American and Polish youth. Action by the
U.S. House of Representatives is now
required for the bill to proceed toward
becoming law. “I am encouraged by this
initiative to create a new educational
exchange opportunity for American and
Polish youth,” noted U.S. Ambassador to
Poland, Victor Ashe.
more |
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Ambassador Ashe
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Ambassador Ashe Speaks at Opening of III
Warsaw Festival of Photography |
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U.S. Ambassador to Poland, Victor Ashe,
helped open the III Warsaw Festival of
Photography on March 22, with an address
to the large opening night audience and
by helping to award prizes to the
winners of an international competition
for Polish and American photography
students. The event at the Academy
of Fine Arts’ Gallery for Media Art in
Warsaw marked the beginning of the
festival, in which 24 galleries will
take part throughout Warsaw through May
20, and is supported by U.S. Embassy
Warsaw.
For location details,
contact the Embassy’s Cultural
Affairs Office.
more |
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Ambassador Ashe Meets with New Polish
Minister of Interior |
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Ambassador Ashe Meets with New Polish
Minister of Interior |
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U.S. Ambassador to Poland, Victor
Ashe, along with U.S. Embassy Warsaw’s
Counselor for Political Affairs, Mary
Curtin, and Legal Attaché, Jay
Bienkowski, met with Poland’s
newly-appointed Minister of Interior,
Janusz Kaczmarek, on March 9. Ambassador
Ashe and Minister Kaczmarek discussed
issues of mutual interest to the United
States and Poland. “I look forward to
working with Minister Kaczmarek on
issues affecting U.S.-Polish relations,”
noted Ambassador Ashe.
more |
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Polish Women in Business |
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Ambassador Ashe Honors Polish Women in
Business |
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U.S.
Ambassador to Poland, Victor Ashe,
celebrated International Women’s Day and
Women’s History Month on March 9 with a
panel discussion and reception at his
Residence in honor of Polish women in
business. Panel members included Daria
Golebiowska-Tataj, professor at the
Warsaw University of Technology; Anna
Karaszewska, Director of Strategic
Development Department, Lewiatan;
Agnieszka Dydycz, Director of Citigroup
Business Services, Citibank; and Jolanta
Jaworska, Governmental Programs
Executive, IBM Poland. Approximately 200
women attended the event, which included
business executives, high-level
governmental officials, uniformed
military officers, and several notable
business owners.
more |
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U.S. to be “Lead Nation” for Poland’s 2007 International Defense Trade
Show in Kielce, Poland; September 3-6, 2007. For more information,
click here.
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WERSJA POLSKA
