Programs and events 2005

(Prime Minister Marek Belka's Chancellery)

The situation in Ukraine was one of the focal points for Vice President Dick Cheney and a group of Congressmen during a meeting with Prime Minister Marek Belka in Krakow on January 27.

The U.S. delegation is in Poland for the commemoration of the 60the anniversary of the liberation of the Auschwitz-Birkenau death camp.

In reviewing the developments in Ukraine, both sides agreed on the need to fully support Ukraine as it undergoes political and economic transformation.

The talks also focused on the upcoming elections in Iraq and the continuation of the Polish stabilization mission there, as well as Polish-U.S. military cooperation and its importance for modernizing the Polish armed forces.

On the issue of economic relations with Poland, the Prime Minister referred to the offset agreement linked to the 48 F-16 aircraft purchased from Lockheed-Martin in December 2002.

He noted that the offsets make the U.S. the third largest foreign investor in Poland.

Those traveling with Vice President Cheney include Congressman Tom Lantos, Ranking Democrat on the House International Relations Committee and Holocaust Survivor; Annette Tillemann Lantos, Holocaust Survivor; Feliks Bruks, President of the Polish Association of Former Political Prisoners and Holocaust Survivor; Deborah Lipstadt, Professor of Modern Jewish and Holocaust Studies, Emory University; Fred Schwartz, Founder and President, Auschwitz Jewish Center; Elie Wiesel, Author and Founder of the Elie Wiesel Foundation for Humanity and Holocaust Survivor.

The Congressional delegation visiting Poland with Vice President Cheney includes Steve Israel (Democrat from New York), Thaddeus McCotter (Republican from Michigan) and Shelley Berkley (Democrat from Nevada).