*Administration of Barack H. Obama, 2009 *

**Remarks Prior to a Meeting With President Lech Kaczynski and Prime Minister Donald Tusk of Poland in Prague, Czech Republic **

*April 5, 2009 *

Let me just say very briefly that the relationship between the United States and Poland is one of the strongest in the world. It's based not only on shared values, but also on the fact that, just to give you an example, in Chicago, my friends from Poland and the contribution they've made to our city is part of what makes America. So we have benefited from Polish culture and the Polish people and the outstanding Polish character.

And so it is a great pleasure to meet with these outstanding leaders. We're looking forward to continuing some of the conversations that we've been having both in the EU summit as well as in earlier meetings in NATO. And I'm confident that on issues ranging from security to energy to economics, that by working together, we're going to be able to make both our countries more prosperous and more peaceful for future generations.

NOTE: The President spoke at 4:12 p.m. in the Prague Congress Center. A tape was not available for verification of the content of these remarks.

*Categories:* Meetings With Foreign Leaders and International Officials : Poland :: President Kaczynski; Meetings With Foreign Leaders and International Officials : Poland :: Prime Minister Tusk.

*Locations:* Prague, Czech Republic.

*Names:* Kaczynski, Lech; Tusk, Donald.

*Subjects:* Czech Republic : President Obama's visit; Europe : European Union :: Summit with U.S.; North Atlantic Treaty Organization; Poland : President; Poland : Prime Minister; Poland : Relations with U.S.

*DCPD Number:* DCPD200900231.