WUI (Writing under the influence)

I remember when Poland was to be admitted to NATO. There were many in the US who objected. When NATO requested more troops for its operations in Afghanistan the French, the Germans, and the rest of the Old Europe refused. Poland just sent 1,000 troops to Afghanistan.

Poland will increase its military contingent in Afghanistan from 120 troops currently to about 1,000 by February, Minister of Defense Radoslaw Sikorski said while in Washington D.C.

"We are going to participate in operations in eastern Afghanistan," Sikorski said

Polish officers will also be integrated into the command structure of the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF), the Defense Ministry said.

"The cost of the Afghanistan intervention is estimated at 300 million zlotys ($92 mln) and will be covered by Poland," the Ministry added.

The new deployment of troops will not adversely effect Warsaw's commitment in Iraq, the statement said.

NATO commander James Jones urgently requested last week that an additional 2,000 troops be sent to Afghanistan, noting that Taliban resistance has proven far more resilient than expected.

Why would Poland do it when other, more sophisticated members of the EU wouldn't. Polish people happen to have good memory. They remember that the freedoms they enjoy today were given to them by the stubbornness of another great American president.

In addition to 1,000 troops, Poland is giving its hero proper recognition.

WARSAW (Reuters) - Polish admirers of Ronald Reagan plan to raise a statue of the former U.S president in Warsaw, where he is revered for his role in the downfall of communism in Europe.

The 3.5-meter (3.8-yard) stone-and-bronze statue will stand across from the U.S. Embassy, the head of the group raising money for the memorial said on Monday. The group includes Poles living in Poland, Canada and the United States.

"Reagan was the person who defeated the communists and opened the way for freedom in Poland," Janusz Dorosiewicz said. "The statue is a way for his legacy to live on."

Many Poles credit staunch anti-communist Reagan with helping the anti-communist movement in eastern Europe. In 1989, Poland became the first country in the region to shake off communism.

The group plans to unveil the Reagan statue on in 2007 on July 4 -- the U.S. Independence Day.

BTW, Polish Prime Minister just met with Bush and Cheney.

PM Jaroslaw Kaczynksi met with U.S. president George W. Bush on Wednesday and both leaders declared their mutual friendship and good working relations.

Kaczynski also met with vice-president Dick Cheney and discussed energy security, relations with Ukraine, the Iran issue, as well as the ongoing problems in the Middle East.

The issue of the anti-missle [sic] shield which the U.S. wants to place in either Poland or the Czech Republic was not discussed.

They probably thanked him for being able to run those secret CIA prisons in Poland.