Will the U.S. deploy a Missile Defense System in Poland?


While the U.S. Embassy in Poland are organising a nation-wide lecture tour, partly to convince students and academics to support the controversial proposed U.S. Anti-Ballistic Missile (ABM) Defense system, the U.S. military claim to have conducted a successful test.
The Missile Defence Agency reported Saturday that
Patriot systems could destroy incoming ballistic missiles in their final minute of flight
.

Meanwhile a mobilisation of Anti-ABM forces is being planned for next March. Anti-militarist activists from a wide range of political backgrounds are expected to participate in a weekend at Redzikowo and Slupsk in Northern Poland. Redzikowo is the planned site for a base that would contain 10 missile interceptors. It is 4 kms from the city of Slupsk.

Why the former and current Polish administration have been licking U.S. administration ass by allowing a system to 'defend' then from an imaginary threat from Iran, while most definitely running the risk of pissing off relations even further with Russia and the E.U. is a symptom of a deep illness. By warming up to the ever-growing tentacles of the U.S. military octopus the Polish government is souring relations with it's two traditional nemeses, Germany and Russia. The former is certainly not a threat to Poland, while the latter will just continue to flex it's muscles once it deems it's national pride bloodied by daring military adventures on it's doorstep, i.e. U.S. missiles in Poland.

So will the Russian proposal of a joint U.S.-Russian system in Azerbaijan against the Iranian threat transpire?

Will social movements in Poland and the Czech Republic (where the radar system is planned) grow in sufficient numbers alongside political opposition from the Social Democrats (in Poland) and achieve it's demand of a referendum on whether the shield should be allowed or not? The president, Lech Kaczynski, has already stated that National Defense should not be decided upon by such means.
Political sources have informed this Paddy in Poland that it is highly unlikely a sufficent amount of MPs will be convinced to support the idea of a referendum.

A recent pre-election debate between former Prime Minister, Jaroslaw Kaczynski, of the conservative nationalist PiS party and Donald Tusk from the pro-business, economically liberal PO party revealed that Tusk, who won the election last week, would renegotiate the defense shield pact with America.
"You say we've gained a lot from our ties with the U.S., but you don't name a thing. Where are the visas? Where are the business deals?" Mr. Tusk asked Mr. Kaczynski.

Furthermore a leading Civic Platform lawmaker, Slawomir Nowak, was quoted by Associated Press as saying that
"Poland must have a security guarantee tied to basing a missile shield on its soil. I'm talking about a missile defense system against short-range missiles, such as Patriot missiles."


The increasing militarisation of Poland is a sad development from a State which has experiences such loss at the hands of destructive weaponry, and I fear that the lack of any organised peace movement here will have it's voice adequately heard to convince the public to mobilise against more weapon systems being based on it's soil. From participation in Afghanistan and Iraq, growing arms deals abroad from State companies such as Bumar, the purchasing of 27 F-16's, and now the prioritisation of business deals above true national security which would be based in peaceful, non-exploitative, non-violent, non-threatening relations with other States and it's citizens.

We'll march in hope.

Comments

varus said…
After 50 years of effectivly having no goriegn policy Poland is jumping in at the deep end. I fear that it is attempting to play the game at too higher level. The issues it is getting involved in are global and yet it has no global interests. Britain and the US both have their own reasons to be getting involved in other's business. However, Poland does not have the resources to play such a risky game. If the UK eccourgaes the wrath of Russia or Iran as part os its strategy and alliance with America, and the US relinqueshes on promes to aide it, then it at least has its own Nukes, Tridents, Aircraft carriers etc, Poland alas has none of these and so there would be no effective means of retailiating or detering an aggressor. It would then be in a world of hurt.
Damien Moran said…
A few days ago a Polish woman tried to convince me that Poland 2007 may not be as different (security-wise) as Poland 1937!!!

I did my best to persuade her that Angela Merkel was no Adolf Shitler, nor was Putin Stalin's clone - but alas, to no avail.

So when you have such attitudes in Polish society it is hardly any surprise that politicians feel they can play with big toys and not get burnt.

Warsaw is closer to Washington than Brussels. I'm not usually a fatalist, but I cannot see this not transpiring as planned. I think Russia will be wooed somehow though so the threats to Poland, European cities, etc. may not be any serious long-lasting problem.

Remember, there was also the issue where Russia seemed to ok the building of a major NATO base in Poland, once it was west of the Wisla.

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