Lech Walesa: Europe must me strong and shouldn’t forget about Belarus

The former Polish president and legendary leader of Solidarity trade union has give an account of his vision of the European situation after the US refused to place its anti-missile shield there.

An article by Lech Walesa was published by «Wirtualna Polska» web portal. The text of the article follows:

Recent days have become an important lesson for the Polish politics and state interests’ strategy. We have fully recognized that our foreign policy and security policy shouldn’t have a bias to any side, but should be balanced.

We have received a lesson of a new thinking. We could feel aggrieved by the US and their president Barack Obama. We can accuse him as Russia is closer to him than our country. However, on Wednesday he proved that he has broader vision. Finally he said for the world to hear that global politics and policy of the Western civilization should approach a new era and be based on a new philosophy.

Naturally, it should be admitted that the issue of anti-missile shield was among the issues of the cold war. We must defend ourselves, ensure security, but today it should be done in a different way, not using the language of confrontation, but the language of cooperation. Obama is trying to speak about that, but these ideas are unpopular in our country, and only Russia is glad about that. Obama proceeds from the presupposition that everyone means well and has only peaceful intentions. I want to believe that too. If everyone who speaks about such intentions wants to build such a world, then it is our aim, and we should work for it.

That’s what should create the epoch of solidarity and responsibility. That’s’ the second commitment – responsibility. If we won’t find enough force and arguments to persuade of necessity of solidarity and cooperation (and stormy speeches of news anchors on Wednesday have demonstrated that it is not so easy), how we would defend ourselves. It is a serious dilemma: to trust, but verify and control. One should proceed from a principle: to cooperate, to show solidarity, but to secure oneself at the same time.

The US should understand that it’s impossible to switch everybody from the confrontational thinking of the cold war to open, democratic and global thinking. Regretfully, we continue to pay for our failure to act: since the end of the cold war we haven’t brought the old structures in line with modern conditions. I have been repeating that for many years. And I try to persuade of that step by step. Obviously, I haven’t persuaded everyone yet.

What a decision Poland should look for? Definitely, there is no use to cry on the shoulder of the US president during a common dinner. We must be firm and do our thing. You should count on yourself, if you are good at counting, as everybody knows. But we shouldn’t stay alone.

Let us look for a sensible balance in our policy let us use our situation. Firstly, we are in Europe, in its structures, and it is our strong point. And the US has respect to that. If we are strong in Europe, we would be reckoned with. And is we are to be strong, we shouldn’t hamper the development of the EU. We shouldn’t be those who block Lisbon Treaty ratification. It is to serve as cement and an essential element for the strong European Union.

We can found our policy on good relations with our neighbours. We are successful at that with Germany, it is more difficult with Russia, but we have succeeded in overcoming some things already.

The time has come to turn our face to Eastern partners, to draw Ukraine and Belarus into the orbit of the EU activities more energetically. That’s how our approach to the balanced police should look like. We shouldn’t count on a helpful uncle from the US only, who has two hundred other countries (though we prefer that sentimentally). You should cultivate this uncle, remind of yourself, but not forgetting were we are and who is really close to us.