President Bush pledged Wednesday that Poland will have a voice in any decision affecting its fate and declared that the Eastern European nation's present borders with Germany are "totally assured."
Bush made the remarks in a welcoming ceremony for Polish Prime Minister Tadeusz Mazowiecki. His visit to the United States was aimed at burying the vestiges of the Cold War and promoting a stronger voice for Poland in shaping non-communist Europe.Fortified with $10 billion in international aid, Mazowiecki has been guaranteed a pledge of U.S. support for a transition to democracy and free economic markets.
In his remarks, Bush addressed one of Poland's chief worries as it emerges from communist totalitarian rule to become a fledgling democracy - that a strong unified Germany may try to reshape its borders.
"In any decision affecting the fate of Poland, Poland must have a voice," Bush said, evoking applause among the spectators, many of Polish-American descent.
"In this time of turbulent change, the United States will remain a European power . . . a force for freedom, stability and security," he added. "We see a new Europe in which the security of all European states . . . secure within their present borders is totally assured."
Last week, West and East Germany and the four World War II allies - the United States, Britain, France and the Soviet Union - agreed to give Poland a seat at their "two-plus-four" unification talks when the topic concerns Poland's border with Germany.
A tragic history with Germany, evidenced by the loss of 6 million Poles during the war, has heightened Polish concerns about a strong unified Germany.
Mazowiecki wants to foreclose the possibility of any future claims on German territories that Poland acquired after World War II.