Judgment day in January

Outgoing President Aleksander Kwaśniewski's last official visit to Washington was exceedingly friendly. "You can leave ... your office with your head held high, because of the fine work you have done," US President George Bush told Kwaśniewski. However, the cordial atmosphere certainly wasn't hurt by Kwaśniewski's confirmation that Polish troops will remain part of the stabilization effort in Iraq until the end of January.

"Our troops are in Iraq and they will stay in Iraq until the end of January," said Kwaśniewski. However, he added that the decision to extend Polish troop's stay in Iraq was up to the next government. "[W]e have to think about the future and we have to respect the right of the new government and the new president to make their decisions about it," he said.

Both Law and Justice and Civic Platform have expressed openness to the idea of keeping Polish troops in Iraq, but only if the US gives something in return, such as increased military aid.

"We had a talk about who might succeed Aleksander, and their opinions," said President Bush. "My advice would be for whoever succeeds the President to come and visit."