Poland, US stand with Ukraine: deputy PM

A Polish deputy prime minister has said in Washington that Poland and the United States "stand with Ukraine on the side of freedom."

Polish Deputy Prime Minister Piotr Gliński addresses an event at the Polish embassy in Washington to mark Polish Constitution Day on Tuesday, May 3, 2022.

Twitter/Embassy of Poland U.S.

Piotr Gliński made the statement during a visit to the United States on Tuesday, which was Poland’s Constitution Day, Polish state news agency PAP reported.

Today, Poles celebrate one of our most important holidays - Constitution Day! 📜#DYK that when it was adopted in 1791 by the Sejm of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, it became the second national constitution in the world after the 🇺🇸 Constitution?

Niech żyje Polska! 🇵🇱 pic.twitter.com/lkZH5podw1

— Embassy of Poland U.S. (@PolishEmbassyUS) May 3, 2022

During a ceremony at the Polish embassy in Washington, Gliński said: “For Polish people, freedom is the most important value, alongside solidarity and respect for human dignity.”

He noted that Polish national heroes Tadeusz Kościuszko and Kazimierz Pułaski took part in the American War of Independence in the 18th century.

Gliński said that, thanks to them, as well as pianist and statesman Ignacy Jan Paderewski, actress Helena Modrzejewska and Nobel Prize-winning poet Czesław Miłosz, “the spirit of freedom transcended the Atlantic Ocean, which separates our countries geographically.”

‘Poland and US stand with Ukraine on the side of freedom’

“Today, Poland and the United States stand with Ukraine on the side of freedom, this special value that is indispensable to every independent state,” Gliński told the gathering.

He added: “Today we stand together, as we stood together during the Revolutionary War, World War II and the Solidarity revolution. Freedom will win and the united free world will overcome the imperial Russian mentality."

🇵🇱 Deputy PM @PiotrGlinski: "Today we stand together, as we stood together during the Revolutionary War, WWII and the Solidarity revolution. Freedom will win and the united free world will overcome the imperial Russian mentality." pic.twitter.com/hEL64GhTW3

— Embassy of Poland U.S. (@PolishEmbassyUS) May 4, 2022

Poland ‘at the vanguard’ of defending Ukraine: US official

Meanwhile, US Assistant Secretary of State Karen Donfried praised Poland’s desire for freedom throughout its history, officials told reporters.

Donfried said: “Poland stands at the vanguard of the body of nations defending Ukraine against Putin's brutal war of aggression.”

She added: “The Polish people have demonstrated again and again their unshakable commitment to freedom.”

🇺🇸 Assistant Secretary of State @KDonfried: "Poland stands at the vanguard of the body of nations defending Ukraine against Putin's brutal war of aggression. The Polish people have demonstrated again and again their unshakable commitment to freedom." pic.twitter.com/yOSmSVHvXd

— Embassy of Poland U.S. (@PolishEmbassyUS) May 4, 2022

Poland on Tuesday celebrated 231 years since the adoption of its pioneering constitution of May 3, 1791. 

It was the first modern supreme law in Europe and the second worldwide, after the American constitution, according to historians.

Wednesday is day 70 of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Poland on Wednesday reported it had welcomed around 3.14 million refugees fleeing Russia's war on Ukraine.

(pm/gs)

Source: IAR, PAP