Poland will lift block on Russia's OECD membership talks
WARSAW (AFP) — Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk on Tuesday made good on his pledge to improve ties with Russia, promising to drop Warsaw's opposition to Moscow's bid to join the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).
"I informed the Russian side that Poland abandoned its block on these talks," imposed because of long-standing political grievances, Tusk told reporters.
"The goal of this step is to have an impact on the improvement of Polish-Russian relations," said Tusk, who has said he wants to mend fences with Poland's eastern and western neighbours alike since winning office last month.
"It is a first step," he added.
Tusk's liberal Civic Platform defeated the conservative Law and Justice party in a snap election on October 21.
Relations between Warsaw and Moscow have been at their lowest ebb since Poland broke free from the communist bloc in 1989, notably because the Kremlin was riled by what proved to be crucial Polish support for the pro-Western "Orange Revolution" in Ukraine in 2004.
The 30-member OECD, which tries to coordinate policies among industrialised countries, has acknowledged that it must adapt to a changing global economy, and in May invited Russia, Estonia, Chile, Israel and Slovenia to begin membership talks.
The OECD operates by consensus, so Polish opposition meant Russia's membership moves were on ice. Warsaw's change of heart does not mean Russia will be able to join the organisation overnight, however, because membership talks can last for years.
Tusk's predecessor as premier, Jaroslaw Kaczynski, who also sparred regularly with fellow European Union leaders, had consistently kept up Poland's opposition to Russia's OECD membership moves because of bitter political and trade spats between Warsaw and Moscow.
Russia imposed an embargo on meat imports from Poland in 2005 over food safety concerns, but Poland countered that the ban was groundless and accused Russia of playing politics.
Poland has also sought to hamper Russia's efforts to join the 151-nation World Trade Organisation (WTO), which lays down the rules for much of global commerce.
Tusk also said that Poland's new stance on the OECD would help spur Russia's WTO entry bid, but his spokeswoman Agnieszka Liszka later said this was a "slip" by the premier.
Poland has also vetoed talks between its fellow members of the 27-nation EU and Russia on a new partnership accord because of the meat ban.
Tusk said that Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski would soon hold talks in Brussels with their Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov.
Officials said the meeting could take place on December 6, and was meant to lay the ground for a visit by Tusk to Moscow.
"I want this to happen as soon as possible," Tusk said in response to a question from a Russian reporter.
"You have your election timetable," he said, referring to Russia's December 2 parliamentary polls, "but we ... are certainly not going to be waiting long for a visit and a positive outcome for both sides."
"God willing, we will be able to thaw our relations, which up to now have not been very good," he added.
