19 May 2014

Poland, Russia, Ukraine: Experts to Discuss the Future of Transatlantic Relations

 Washington, D.C. – In light of the crisis in Ukraine, the Bipartisan Policy Center (BPC) will host two Undersecretaries of State—one a former U.S. official, the other a sitting Polish minister—for a discussion on the future of transatlantic relations this Thursday, May 22, at 10:00AM.
The conversation will focus on the role Poland and other recent EU members can play in strengthening the transatlantic relationship, especially in light of the crisis in Ukraine.

It has been 25 years since Poland held free elections and emerged from behind the Iron Curtain, 15 years since it joined NATO, and ten years since it became a member of the EU. These milestones would not have been possible without American support for the project of Europe “whole and free.” Today that project appears, if not endangered, then fragile. The future of European expansion is in question and, although the Ukrainian crisis has refocused attention on U.S.-European security cooperation, the transatlantic relationship has increasingly been marked by disagreements, including over: surveillance, free trade, security spending and Russian sanctions.

BPC and the Embassy of the Republic of Poland will convene a discussion on how to reinvigorate the transatlantic relationship to address these shared challenges, with a particular focus on how Poland and other relatively recent members of the European community can today work with the United States toward the continued goal of a Europe whole and free.