Motion to award Donald Trump the Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Republic of Poland
I have submitted a request to the President of Poland Andrzej Duda to decorate President Donald Trump with the Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Republic of Poland
The Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Republic of Poland is the highest decoration awarded to foreigners in Poland. It has been awarded to: Ronald Reagan – 1991, George H.W. Bush – 1995, Madeleine Albright – 2009, Hillary Clinton – 2013.
Through his activities, Donald J. Trump made an outstanding contribution to cooperation between the Republic of Poland and the United States and has actually strengthened the international position of our country in Europe and around the world. Donald J. Trump backed a number of initiatives that matched with Poland’s geopolitical priorities and foreign policy, which justifies the award of the Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Republic of Poland, established by an act of October 16, 1992.
His tenure as forty-fifth President of the United States brought for Poland overwhelming support the country has never seen in recent years as well as a sensitive approach to any issues pertaining to its national security.
After long-running uncertainty amid our balancing between west and east, we––as a country and, most importantly, as nation – have been offered a clear and legible pledge of support in our efforts to achieve full economic, energy, and military sovereignty. Poland’s path for development, which saw splendid bilateral ties with the United States, should serve as a role model for further steps to achieve much-desired stability in Central Europe.
The tenure of Donald J. Trump was marked by increasing efforts to nurture ties between the United States and Poland. The leaders of the two states met five times: in July 2017, September 2018, June 2019, September 2019, and June 2020. A notable visit was that in 2017 when addressing the crowd in Warsaw, the U.S. president spoke of Poland’s heroic deeds during World War II while delineating the key strategic importance both the country and the entire region had for the world’s geopolitics.
It was with firm support from the Donald J. Trump administration that the Three Seas Initiative.
3SI was brought to life as a forum of twelve EU nations in Central Europe seeking energy independence and security in the region through a platform regrouping strong and stable countries along NATO’s eastern flank. Effective steps taken under the project could materialize with the shift in Washington’s domestic energy policy based on exploiting its crude and gas fields, including shale gas production projects. In consequence, Poland can import U.S.-sourced energy flows through its liquefied natural gas terminal in Świnoujście to diversify energy supplies and become independent of Russian fossil fuels. The energy hegemony was an inherent part of our history for many years yet it can resurface. Washington’s support in the form of sanctions on businesses involved in constructing the Russian natural gas pipeline, Nord Stream 2, is another example of outstanding U.S. efforts to enhance Polish security. It was long possible to block the construction of the pipeline with a prompt response from Washington and its pledge of support to the region’s energy sovereignty.
In June 2019, the two countries signed a joint declaration on defense cooperation to raise the force of U.S. military personnel in Poland to 5,500.
Thus U.S. troops form the biggest military contingent on NATO’s eastern wing and the fourth in Europe after Germany (37,500), Italy (12,000), and the United Kingdom (8,300). Washington’s move came as a clear sign of support for Poland’s sovereignty and independence against aggressive steps the Russian Federation has in the past made in Ukraine and Georgia. At the same Washington meeting, Poland declared its intention to purchase 32 new-generation U.S.-made F-35 fighter jets, as confirmed by an agreement the two countries inked a year later.
Furthermore, 2019 brought a breakthrough in U.S.-Poland social and economic ties, as Poland was designated into the Visa Waiver Program after years-long pursuits.
President Donald J. Trump signed into law the decision of the U.S. Department of State in October 2019. Starting from November 11, 2019, there are no longer visa requirements for Polish passport holders for 90-day visits for business and vacation. I firmly believe that this is another example of President Donald J. Trump’s commitment to forging cordial ties between his country and Poland.
