Especially for the readers of „Facts From Poland” we present excerpts from the latest interview with President Andrzej Duda for the weekly „Sieci”

JACEK KARNOWSKI, MICHAŁ KARNOWSKI: Mr President, we are having this conversation just after your return from the United States. What are your remarks about the discussions with the American side, including the most important - President Donald Trump? You have submitted an offer of setting up “Fort Trump” in Poland. What does it mean?

PRESIDENT ANDRZEJ DUDA: Ford Trump is a humorous name which was well-received in the United States, by President Trump and the media. It is a project that is fundamental to the future of Poland. Permanent American military bases have proven themselves as a guarantee of security, as was observed during the years of the Cold War, where they showed their stabilizing power. This was the case in West Germany, which resisted the pressure from the East also thanks to their existence. Moreover, they act as a general deterrent; they were a factor that destroyed the Soviet military expansion plans proving to be a good guardian of Europe’s security. After 1999, the border of NATO has shifted. It is time to move the security border as well. And this goal can only be realized by allied, mainly American, presence in Poland and other countries, like Romania. It has already been realized, what we appreciate, but it would be optimal for our security and security of Europe to make it bigger and more steady. This is an element of strengthening our sustainable presence in the world of the free West.

Alright, but can you promise that Fort Trump is going to be built? A military base like Rammstein in Germany - it is a big city and barracks for American soldiers.

It is not about building the same base as in Rammstein. We want it to be a base that will have full infrastructure. And we are ready to prepare it. I understand the American policy that those who use the American umbrella must contribute to its maintenance. An American taxpayer has the right to ask why he is the only one to bear European security burdens. That’s why I told President Trump that we are ready to prepare the right infrastructure. And it is treated there as a strong argument to support this project. (…)

You have not decided about the fight for reelection yet, but Jaroslaw Kaczyński’s camp will fight for the next four years. How do you assess the chance for his next term?

Poles will assess. But I would like everyone to ask themselves a question, how many times it has occurred in the last 30 years, that a political camp has fulfilled its electoral commitments to such an extent? If the assessment is objective, made from this perspective, then the answer to your question is that the chance is big. There were many things in Poland that required major changes, reforms, one had to raise the standard of living, strengthen the family, support those who carry the burden of raising children, and do something about the demographic crisis. In my opinion, the 500+ program is undoubtedly the most important and had great positive effects.

Mr President, when you have recently underlined that we must connect our national hopes primarily with the Polish state, and that EU community is conventional, you said: imaginary, the storm broke. What is your attitude to the EU?

I am a great supporter of the European Union, which is a union of sovereign, independent nation states. I’ve always emphasized it, it is nothing new. In this regard, I am very pro-European. But I cannot pretend that I don’t see what is going on around us. When our neighbors act against us and against many other member states building Nord Stream 2, is this a real community, or somehow incomplete? And how to understand the idea of ​​creating a two-speed Europe, which is to relegate us to secondary status? And how to classify imposing on us what the Polish legal system should look like and who should rule in it? Furthermore, it is imposed only on us, because Western countries have the right to arrange it according to their own rules. This is what I call a destruction of the European community. And the overriding thing: I am the president of the Republic of Poland, therefore taking care of the future of our country, my homeland, is my primary duty.

Are you not concerned about these cries in the world around changes in Poland?

I am worried about these lies about Poland, but I also understand the reasons for these actions: things are going well, both inside the country, as in the area of building Poland’s position regarding international relations. I am asking all Poles, including readers of the weekly „Sieci”: please, remember that there is no empty room in the international space. If we expand our sphere of influence, then somewhere the walls are bending, somewhere else there is somebody who has no more space. We must all understand it; see it in the right proportions. I wish to emphasize: Polish matters are going well.