“Every Pole, of course, has the right to share their opinions. But we also have the right to respond to those opinions or assessments,” says the US ambassador in his first interview since breaking off relations with the Speaker of the Sejm.
Poles have always trusted America. Now, however, it turns out that a staggering 53.2% of them believe the United States is not a reliable ally. Only 29.9% see the United States as a credible ally, according to a poll for “Rzeczpospolita.” How can this be explained?
If these results truly reflect the state of public opinion, it’s regrettable. And more so for Poland than for America. We love Poland, we want a strong alliance with it. We have enormous respect for the Polish people and strive to make our relationship with Poland as productive and constructive as possible. This clearly serves our interests as well. We are not here for benevolent reasons. We live in a time of enormous geopolitical change. Therefore, if support among Poles for this alliance is weakening, it is very unfortunate, unfair, and unjust. Today in America we have a president who simply speaks boldly about the way the world is. He doesn’t so much change the course of events as respond to a changing reality. I am convinced that most Poles realize this; most know that we are Poland’s best ally, Poland’s greatest friend. Therefore, I am not overly concerned by the results of this poll, because ultimately, we remain partners and allies. And that will not change.
However, there are voices that your decision to sever relations with the Speaker of the Sejm further weakens America’s credibility. After all, this isn’t about personal matters, but about state matters. Both you and Włodzimierz Czarzasty, who, by virtue of his position, enjoys enormous democratic legitimacy, represent states.
So you think I shouldn’t respond to his attacks on the president?
Czarzasty essentially said that he believed President Trump did not deserve the Nobel Peace Prize. You claimed it was unprovoked and outrageous insults…
That’s not all he said. Everyone can reread it. I don’t need to repeat it. I’ve said enough about it. I’ve made my point. We will not accept or tolerate outrageous insults against our president! Every Pole, of course, has the right to share their opinions. But we also have the right to respond to those opinions or assessments. And that’s exactly what I did. Ten years since Donald Trump took office, it’s easy to understand that personal attacks on the president are unproductive.
Which part of the Speaker’s statement could be considered a personal attack on President Trump? It would be very helpful if you could explain this to the Polish people.
Certainly. And it would certainly be useful for the media to keep this topic alive. But you can ask me the same question 25 times and you’ll get the same answer.
So let’s go a step further. You decided to cut ties with Czarzasty. But America maintains relations with immeasurably more controversial figures, such as Vladimir Putin. How can this be explained?
I don’t have to explain it!