[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 38, Number 29 (Monday, July 22, 2002)]
[Pages 1220-1221]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Joint Statement by President George W. Bush and President Aleksander 
Kwasniewski

July 17, 2002

    We reaffirm the deep friendship and vibrant alliance between the 
United States and Poland. We are committed to freedom and democratic 
values, which form the basis of a Europe whole, free, and at peace. As 
we begin the 21st Century, all of Europe's peoples, for the first time 
in history, have an opportunity to live in democracies, at peace with 
themselves and their neighbors. The United States pays tribute to the 
people of Poland, who contributed so much to bringing an end to Europe's 
Cold War division and who led the way to the undivided Europe now taking 
shape. Today, Poland and the United States are determined to complete 
our task: to build the Transatlantic House of Freedom, open to all of 
Europe's peoples and prepared to meet the global challenges of the 21st 
Century. Both sides stress the paramount importance of strong and 
vigilant Transatlantic links for a successful response to the new 
challenges that we face.
    We will meet the new challenges together. We must act decisively to 
win the war against global terror. Polish forces serve alongside United 
States forces in Operation Enduring Freedom. In November 2001, President 
Kwasniewski invited leaders from Central, Eastern, and Southern Europe 
to identify concrete steps to defeat terrorism. The United States 
appreciates this initiative and welcomes follow-up meetings. Poland and 
the United States believe that these efforts can contribute 
significantly to controlling borders, cutting off terrorist financing, 
stemming the smuggling of individuals and equipment for terrorist 
purposes, and preventing bioterrorism.
    In the face of terrorism and other new threats, NATO's traditional 
commitment to collective defense must also be carried out in new ways. 
We are determined to lead NATO's adaptation to meet the new threats we 
face. NATO must develop improved capabilities and be able to respond, 
rapidly and flexibly, to threats from wherever they arise. We are 
determined to provide the resources needed to achieve strengthened 
capabilities and want to work jointly with other Allies to this end. As 
NATO adapts, the United States and Poland are transforming their 
militaries to make them as efficient, mobile, and well-equipped as 
possible. The United States and Poland have agreed to expand cooperation 
between our armed services both to deepen our military-to-military 
relations, and in particular to promote needed transformation in our 
defense. We hope this enhanced cooperation can be a model for activities 
with other Allies.
    We look forward to welcoming new members to the NATO Alliance. The 
enlargement of NATO has already extended security on the European 
continent and will continue. At its Prague Summit, NATO will extend 
invitations to those European democracies ready to share in the 
responsibilities of NATO membership, and the United States and Poland 
have agreed on the desirability of a broad round of enlargement. The 
states aspiring to join NATO have worked hard to institute reforms, 
solidify the rule of law, and leave no doubt about the strength of their 
democratic institutions. Reforms must continue even after membership, 
just as Poland has continued its reforms since joining NATO in 1999.
    We welcome NATO's new relationship with Russia. The NATO-Russia 
Council has great potential for NATO members and Russia to build common 
security against common threats, especially in combating proliferation 
of weapons of mass destruction and terrorism. We also welcome an 
improved relationship between NATO and Ukraine. The United States and 
Poland share an interest in encouraging the aspirations of the people of 
Ukraine to prepare for a future in Europe. We agreed to work together to 
support Ukraine's efforts to implement needed economic and democratic 
reforms. Our two nations urge Belarus to join its neighbors in seeking a 
democratic and free market future.
    Accession to the European Union is essential for Poland's future 
economic growth, and

[[Page 1221]]

benefits our bilateral relations as well as the trans-Atlantic 
relationship. The United States and Poland welcome the impending 
enlargement of the European Union as another signal of the deep roots 
across the European continent of free market principles and open 
societies. We seek stronger ties between the European Union and NATO. 
The prospects for overcoming the most serious challenges of the day are 
enhanced significantly when NATO and the EU cooperate in achieving 
common solutions.
    The Polish-American economic partnership contributes to Poland's 
ability to realize its full potential as a future EU member state, and 
increases employment and high technology growth opportunities in Poland. 
We believe that Poland's aspirations to play a full role within the EU 
is fully compatible with its desire to remain a strong Transatlantic 
partner of the United States. Poland's continued growth and prosperity 
depend on a welcoming, predictable investment climate, and we have 
established an Economic/Commercial Dialogue to enhance our trade and 
investment relationship and to address specific issues of mutual 
concern. Commerce Secretary Evans hopes to visit Poland in 2003 as part 
of our overall effort to enhance our bilateral relations.
    We welcome the contribution of the strong Polish-American community 
to building ties between our nations. For over 200 years the United 
States has been a home and a land of hope for generations of Poles 
searching for the American dream of liberty, freedom, justice, and 
prosperity. Today, their task is not only that of linking our two great 
democracies, but also one of global dimensions, to which Poles and 
Americans devote their energy in the name of the common values that 
Polish Americans have done so much to develop.
    The United States and Poland have worked closely and productively, 
including with Jewish communities in both countries, to promote 
tolerance. We express satisfaction about the efforts made to preserve 
memories of the Holocaust and support initiatives to expand education on 
the history of the Shoah. We renew our commitment to preserve and 
protect significant cultural heritage of mutual interest, and commend 
the progress achieved in this area through cooperation between Polish 
central and local institutions and U.S. public and private institutions.
    The friendship between the United States and Poland is strong and 
enduring. We are united by ties of heritage, family, and faith. 
Bilateral relations between the United States and Poland are excellent, 
and we will work to strengthen those ties. Our common interests 
reinforce our relationship, and we reaffirm today our determination to 
work more closely as friends and allies in the future.

Note: An original was not available for verification of the content of 
this joint statement.