Polish President Lech Kaczynski made an unannounced trip to Iraq on Thursday, holding talks with Iraqi President Jalal Talabani in Baghdad before traveling south to meet Polish forces stationed in Diwaniyah. The two leaders spoke for about 40 minutes on political, economic, and military cooperation. Talabani praised Poland's democratic example at a joint press conference that followed.
Kaczynski was accompanied by Defense Minister Radoslaw Sikorski and Army Chief of Staff General Franciszek Gagor. Addressing the troops, the president argued that Poland's own path to full sovereignty gave it a responsibility to support Iraqis seeking democracy.
Poland currently has around 900 soldiers in Iraq, down sharply from roughly 2,500 at the start of the US-led invasion in 2003. Kaczynski has indicated the contingent could remain through 2007, despite a recent poll showing 72 percent of Poles favor withdrawal. Since 2003, 21 Polish nationals, including 17 military personnel and 4 civilians, have died in Iraq.
Historical summary. TurkishPress restated this wire report, first published in April 2006, in its own words.