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Bush Advocates NATO's Expansion During Poland Visit
Visiting U.S. President George W. Bush said Friday that NATO should be expanded to "include all democracies in Europe."
In a speech on U.S. policies toward central and eastern Europe at Warsaw University, Bush said he believed that NATO membership is open to all European countries which are willing to perform the duties of the alliance.
"My vision of Europe is a larger vision: more countries, more free trade, and one which welcomes Russia and the Ukraine ..." he told the audience.
He said the United States and Europe must unite in facing the threat to security.
Bush said he would assure Russian President Vladimir Putin during their first meeting Saturday that he is looking for a partnership with Washington's Cold War foe, adding that the United States has a stake in Russia's success and looks forward to the day when Russia is "fully reformed, fully democratic and closely bound to the rest of the Europe."
However, Russia has voiced strong opposition to NATO's expansion into the former Soviet territory. U.S. European allies also seem uncertain about the Bush administration's approach to European affairs and Washington's intention to deploy a missile shield that would violate the 1972 Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty.
Many European leaders consider the pact a pillar for global stability, but Bush has called it a relic of the Cold War.
On the situation in the Balkans, Bush said he was pleased to see Europe's decisive role in keeping the stability of the region, but added that the United States also has an important role to play.
"We came to the Balkans together and we will leave there together," he said.
During his visit, Bush had talks with his Polish counterpart Aleksander Kwasniewski on cooperation in the fields of aviation and defense industries and trade. The two countries would sign a number of pacts on the issue.
Despite tight security, protesters followed Bush to all the important sites during his 25-hour stay here. Banner-waving protesters clashed with supporters at the gate of the Warsaw University Library before police intervened and arrested one demonstrator.
Bush arrived here after he attended the European Union summit in Goeteborg, Sweden's second largest city. He is expected to leave Warsaw for Slovenia's capital Ljubljana for a meeting with Putin Saturday.
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