Poland urging Bush to support Baltic states' bid for NATO membership

Polish President Aleksander Kwasniewski announced yesterday that Poland will urge U.S. President George W. Bush during his visit to Europe in mid-June to allow the Baltic states to join NATO in the second wave of enlargement in 2002. Russia is a strong opponent of NATO's enlarging into the Baltic republics, formerly Soviet republics which were annexed by Stalin in 1940. Poland and the Czech Republic claim that diplomatic cooperation must be maintained with Russia so as to support regional security. (Reuters) A.Z.