Poland’s Policy Regarding France
Poland’s Policy Regarding France

Summary/Abstract: Poland has traditionally perceived France as one of its most important partners in Western Europe. This is the result of historical ties between both countries, the presence of the Polish émigré community in France, Poles’ interest in French culture, and the importance of French investments in Poland. At the level of inter-state relations, what counts above all is that France is a leading member of the European Union and the Atlantic Alliance, and that it makes up, with Poland and Germany, the Weimar Triangle. Despite these factors, in the early years of the current decade, Poland had a critical view of its relations with France, due primarily to divergent views on the Iraq crisis and during negotiations on the Constitutional Treaty (2003–2004), as well as to French society’s reluctant attitude toward EU enlargement, due mainly to fears of an influx of cheap labor from new EU member states (the so-called Polish plumber case). President Jacques Chirac’s statement on February 2003 to the effect that EU candidate countries, in their support of the United States on Iraq, had “missed [...] a good opportunity to be silent”1 significantly contributed to the deterioration of France’s image among Poland’s political elites and ordinary citizens alike.

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