Why Should Poland Thank Putin? Let Us Count the Ways (Rzeczpospolita, Poland)

Once again, unlike much of the commentary coming out of Europe, a Polish columnist seems almost pleased that the Ukraine crisis has erupted, bringing with it a renewed sense of urgency from their NATO partners. For Poland’s Rzeczpospolita, columnist Michal Kobosko writes that Vladimir Putin has forced a new narrative on the world, and explains why that is largely a very good thing.

For Rzeczpospolita, Michal Kobosko writes in part:

Within every evil there are elements of good. The Russian offensive forced European decision makers to stake out their positions. Now we know who – which politicians, particularly among euro-skeptic parties which have been growing in strength, are direct supporters of Russia and her interests regardless of the situation. The binary ‘us-them’ system has fallen in place.

 

More importantly, we have a historic opportunity to bring the European Union and the United States closer together. Allies who grew apart as the Cold War faded, we began to compete more than search for commonalities. Much was said about renewing the trans-Atlantic Alliance, but the facts were different. Let Berlin’s shock and outrage over the disclosure of NSA eavesdropping be a symbol of this tendency.

 

The tangible and painful consequence was a progressive weakening and even atrophy of NATO. As defense expenditures in Europe declined, the role of the United States as guarantor of the Alliance’s continuity has steadily increased. If not for Russia’s aggression, the upcoming NATO summit in Wales would have likely brought no breakthrough. The picture is similar on economic grounds: if not for the changes geopolitical situation, there would be no chance for a game-changing turn in E.U.-U.S. relations. Now such a turn may be in the offing, as a result of a negotiated free trade zone comprising Europe and America (the Trans-Atlantic Trade and Investment Partnership).

 

It is common today to expect that due to Russian aggression, the TTIP has a chance for accelerated negotiations and completion. The new situation won’t simplify the talks, as it doesn’t resolve the problem of genetically modified food imports or copyright issues. Nevertheless, strong political will on both sides has been known to overcome much more difficult obstacles. Political will is also what is needed to realize plans for an energy union advocated by Poland – a supremely logical and necessary part of the E.U.’s structure. There will be no strong Europe without a strong and diversified resource base.

 

What does this mean for Poland? Let the proof of our changed situation be the fact that Secretary of State Kerry and Vice President Biden have already visited Poland this year, and soon President Obama with be with us. This has never happened before. Americans are generally tired of the role of a global policeman. In a recent NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll, 47 percent of respondents favored limiting American’s presence in the world. Only 30 percent of Americans asked about Ukraine by the Pew Research Center approved of granting the country direct military support.

READ ON IN ENGLISH OR POLISH, OR READ MORE GLOBAL COVERAGE OF THE UKRAINE CRISIS AT WORLDMEETS.US, your most trusted translator and aggregator of foreign news and views about our nation.

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