Building without concrete
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov was greeted with full honors in Warsaw and received by his counterpart Anna Fotyga, the Prime Minister and the President. Although the visit began with a glaring faux pas on the Polish side, when the guest was greeted with Czech flags rather than Russian ones, the general climate of the visit was very positive. Few concrete decisions were made, however, and there was no breakthrough on the most important issues - the Baltic pipeline, the ban on Polish food products and the missile defense shield that could be located in Poland.
With regard to the pipeline, Lavrov reassured Poland that the investment is not strategically directed against Warsaw. "We are ready to give explanations if our Polish partners have any doubts and fears," he said, adding that other states are invited to participate in the project. That didn't convince Fotyga, who stressed that Poland considers the pipeline controversial and doesn't plan to participate in it.
No concord was reached on the food-ban issue. Lavrov only expressed hope that both countries' sanitary services will soon reach an agreement and trade will recommence. He also stepped lightly when discussing the possibility of placing an American missile-defense base in Poland, saying that Russia would like the negotiation process to be "transparent and predictable." However, he warned that Russia would take the system into consideration when making plans to guarantee strategic stability.
No decision was made about arranging a meeting between the Presidents of both countries. Lavrov said that both leaders desire such a meeting, but he underlined that it has to be carefully prepared.
The Foreign Ministers announced that a group of experts dealing with difficult issues between the two countries would soon reconvene. The group was originally set up in 2002, but its activities were suspended following differences over the Katyń issue. The Ministers' only resolutions had to do with cultural cooperation - mutual cultural festivals and the creation of a children's symphony orchestra comprised of children from both countries.
