Obama visit moves US-Polish relations forward?

Barack Obama in Warsaw in May. Photo: PAP/Pawel Supernak

Speaking to Polish Radio, US Ambassador Lee Feinstein underlined the importance of Poland being on Obama's itinerary, and how Washington’s view of Warsaw may have changed as a result.

“I think what’s different now is a greater appreciation of how closely the United States and Poland are working on a whole set of issues that are very much at the forefront of what’s happening in the world,” Feinstein told Polish Radio’s Wojciech Cegielski.

Energy cooperation was one of the main items on the agenda during Barack Obama’s visit.

US involvement in Poland’s shale gas aspirations is growing, as earlier this year the US Energy Information Administration published a report that Poland may have the largest reserves of shale gas in Europe, estimated at 5.3 trillion cubic metres.

However, the environmental consequences of shale gas drilling and so-called ‘fracking’ have to be taken into account, Feinstein underlines.

On his whip-round tour of Europe at the end of May, US President Barack Obama made his last stop in Warsaw to meet with Polish President Bronislaw Komorowski, other heads of state from across the region, as well as domestic political leaders across the spectrum. (jb)