Poland,Washington, and the Belarus Border Crisis

https://www.washingtonpost.com/outlook/when-the-us-needed-secret-help-in-iraq-who-did-it-call-poland-of-course/2021/10/20/5ec89bc2-25f8-11ec-9de8-156fed3e81bf_story.html

As the Washington Post reports, Pomfret's new book reveals that Polish collaboration with Washington began in earnest only months after the fall of the Berlin Wall. It's hardly a surprise as the people who came into power had been working clandestinely with the United States for more than a decade.

In addition to overt political and diplomatic rapprochement, the rails had been greased by longtime contacts and intelligence operations in concert with the Roman Catholic Church. Additionally the US (through figures like Paul Weyrich, Laszlo Pasztor and others) had laboured to establish contacts in the Eastern Bloc. When the wall came down, the US was ready to pounce and quickly moved in.

Through various groups like the International Republican Institute (IRI), the Krieble Institute, and the National Endowment for Democracy (NED), money was spread around, alliances were forged, and political parties were created and backed. The US was not idle as some thought. George HW Bush's response to events in November 1989 seemed tepid. In reality the US was being very proactive but working quietly outside of public scrutiny. Restraining overt triumphalism created inroads for the US state and given the economic contrast, the vast wealth the US spread around produced palpable results. Within the decade the former Eastern Bloc had almost entirely been appropriated by the Atlanticist camp – a quiet but effective conquest, pursued while Moscow was in a state of disintegration – and near subjugation.

Poland also had Cold War-era connections to the Asiatic East and Washington made quick use of these as well. Throughout the 1990's Poland became an important ally in Eastern Europe, eventually joining NATO and the EU. The US overextended its hand in the aftermath of 2001 as Poland became a central location for Washington's archipelago of black sites – torture centres and secret prisons, a move that generated some resentment within Polish politics.

Though the subsequent and continued rise of Polish nationalism and the rightward-shift of politics in Warsaw have placed some outward strain on the relationship, Washington still views Poland as a key ally. And as a member of the Visegrad Group (V4), Poland plays an important role in countering Brussels – the EU being Washington's sometime ally and sometime rival. While Poland has not replaced the UK in its EU-spoiler role, it nevertheless plays its part and has proven more than willing to be a frontline state in the Anti-Russia campaign.

While Washington cannot officially endorse the Right-wing Law and Justice Party (PiS) agenda in terms of the Polish judiciary, the support is tacit. The relationship has its moments – there was a great deal of press regarding television licensing in the summer of 2021. The US-owned TVN24 was a bit of a thorn in the side of the ruling PiS and the Duda administration sought to shut it down. And yet it would appear the problems have been glossed over and a compromise was found.

There are Atlanticists within the American and EU Establishments that are opposed to the PiS. And yet in other cases history demonstrates the United States is more than willing to keep its allies on edge – and keep them dependent on US backing. US support for Poland tends to be quiet and yet plain enough.

As a frontline state Poland is at present playing a key role in the largely manufactured refugee crisis with Belarus. Western media has aggressively pushed the story in the context of its Anti-Russia coverage and there's little doubt that Lukashenko has used the migrants as a tool of irritation to the EU. But then we've also seen both the US and the EU use immigrants as policy tools and a means of scoring propaganda points. The EU is laughably speaking in terms of 'security threats' and morally condemning the brutality being shown toward the migrants – even while Brussels' Mediterranean policies have led to thousands of drownings and deaths. The overall number on the Polish border is miniscule and hardly a destabilising threat to either Poland or the EU, but the episode is being used to bolster the Polish Right, and Polish militarism in general. And in terms of sheer cruelty, it is the Poles who are acting in the most brutal manner.

The EU is trying to score points with Warsaw and regain some standing and this whole episode is being hyped by the media in order to smear Minsk and Moscow.

The fact that the refugee crisis is the result of NATO and American-led wars throughout the Middle East, Africa, and Central Asia is ignored.

The plight of the migrants is tragic but the real story here is with regard to Poland and the Anti-Russian campaign. NATO is building up its forces in Poland and along Russia's Western frontier. The media has been spreading stories about a Russian build-up of arms near Ukraine and yet it's NATO and its allies in Kiev that stand ready to strike East. From the Baltic to the Black Sea, to the Caucasus, the West is preparing for war, moving troops, armament, and ships – and Moscow knows it all too well.

The refugee crisis is part of this campaign and should a military move be made (say in an attempt to re-capture the Crimea), the episode will be viewed as public preparation, a laying of the groundwork. And clearly, it's working.

And bit by bit, Washington is flexing its muscles, utilising sanctions in every sphere to try and break the Belarusian and Russian economies – effectively forcing them into desperate action. Washington is playing with fire and while Lukashenko is portrayed as sinister – others might see him as stupid and playing right into Western hands. By all indications, though he is supported by Moscow, Putin actually wants him gone.

It's all a game, a lot of smoke and mirrors and tragically the result is suffering and loss of life. As Christians we can pray and show humanitarian interest, but when it comes to the politics, there is no 'good' side to be found here and for the sake of testimony we should be prepared to make a moral stand – even if it means condemning both sides.