Strength of Lithuania and Poland comes from European values and trans-Atlantic cooperation
Wednesday, November 11, Warsaw - President of the Republic of Lithuania Dalia Grybauskaitė participated in the commemorative event held on the occasion of Poland's Independence Day, on J. Piłsudski Square.
Addressing President Lech Kaczyński of Poland, members of the diplomatic corps and all people of Poland in the Polish language, the President of Lithuania said this was a very special day not only for Polish people but also for the whole of Europe. The Head of State noted that Lithuania and Poland had stood together in all major historical moments: the Krėva Act, the Union of Lublin, the Republic of Two Nations, the May 3rd Constitution, the shared pride in Tadeusz Kościuszko, and independence movements of Sąjūdis and Solidarność."History has taught us that freedom is not free. We had to fight for it and we sacrificed the most precious thing of all - human life. Today our commitment and resilience have been finalized by the Lithuanian-Polish strategic partnership - which we are building for the good of future generations," the President said.
According to the President of Lithuania, Poland's Solidarność sparked off freedom movements not only in Poland but also in other Central and Eastern European countries, leading to the fall of the Berlin Wall and to the Baltic Way - a human chain linking Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia, which happened twenty years ago. The Head of State also noted that it was a time that opened the door for the whole region to join the family of European nations.
President Grybauskaitė also said the love that Pope John Paul II had to the aspiration of all nations for freedom, especially his love of free and independent Poland and Lithuania, was a priceless contribution to our cause.
"In the past 20 years - a very short period of time on historical pathway - we have demonstrated that European values and trans-Atlantic cooperation are the founding principles of modern Lithuanian and Polish states and the source of our strength and vitality," the President underlined.
Later today, President Dalia Grybauskaitė and Polish President Lech Kaczyński will meet to discuss the future of bilateral relations, the NATO defence strategy, and the course of implementation of Lithuanian-Polish electricity link project.
