The Polish president will take part May 9 in celebrations in Moscow marking the 60th anniversary of the end of World War II. But Aleksander Kwaśniewski's decision to attend the event has stirred up considerable controversy and triggered mixed reactions from the public.

Kwaśniewski said recently that even if his presence in Moscow did not produce any political benefits, "losses would be huge if he decided not to go." In his opinion, Poland-a country that has achieved much success in the first year of its EU membership and active on the international arena-is increasingly perceived in Russia as "anti-Russian and irresponsible." In Kwaśniewski's view, if he failed to go to Moscow on May 9 the Russians would receive an argument that could be used against Poland in international relations.

The president emphasized that Vladimir Putin, as the main organizer of the Moscow event, would be the only official speaker during the anniversary ceremony. "We expect the Russians to mention the Ribbentrop-Molotov Pact and to admit that the end of World War II did not bring liberation to all, that to some it brought enslavement and limited sovereignty and that it created many problems that were solved only in 1989 and 1990," said Kwaśniewski. He added he had asked Western leaders to try to convince the Russians that this is the line which should be followed.

The problem of the president's visit in Moscow has been discussed by parliamentarians. On April 21, the Sejm Committee on Foreign Affairs rejected a draft resolution prepared by the leader of the Catholic-National Movement (RKN) Antoni Macierewicz calling on the president not to go to Moscow for the anniversary. But rightist politicians continue to criticize the decision made by the head of state.

"Most Poles are against celebrating the 60th anniversary of the end of World War II in the form proposed by Putin," said Władysław Bartoszewski, former minister of foreign affairs in the Solidarity Election Action (AWS) government. According to Bartoszewski, Poland could be represented in Moscow by the prime minister just like the Russian Federation was represented in the Vatican during the funeral of Pope John Paul II. Kwaśniewski replied that the invitation to the Moscow celebrations had been sent by the Russians to him personally so no one can replace him as a representative of Poland in Moscow.

Władysław Frasyniuk, leader of the non-parliamentary Freedom Union (UW), presented a different opinion about the president's visit to Moscow. "As the head of state, Kwaśniewski should represent us there. By doing so we will not be giving Putin a pretext for saying that one can reach an agreement with German comrades but not with Poles," said the UW leader. He also pointed out that many Russian soldiers had died on Polish soil and one should pay tribute to them.

The issue of the Polish president's visit to Moscow has a context wider than merely bilateral relations with Russia. In mid-April, the media published the news that during the ceremonies in the Russian capital the Polish president could find himself side by side with North Korean leader Kim Jong Il, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko and Turkmenistan's leader Saparmurad Nijazov, politicians ignored by the democratic world.

Responding to these reports, Kwaśniewski said that Lukashenko has "a special right" to take part in the Moscow commemorations because the Belarusian nation "suffered the highest losses during World War II if compared to its total population." According to Kwaśniewski, the presence in Moscow of Kim Jong Il could be much more of a problem to U.S. President George W. Bush. Kwaśniewski added that, in his opinion, it was rather doubtful that Kim Jong Il would turn up in Moscow because the North Korean leader does not like traveling outside his country.

According to Minister of Foreign Affairs Adam Rotfeld, Lukashenko and Kim Jong Il will probably not take part in the commemorations. Rotfeld added that EU countries decided to take part irrespective of whether Lukashenko is present or not. The Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs had consulted its EU partners on the matter.

Surveys show that 30 percent of Poles believe that the president should attend the Moscow celebrations. Some 23 percent of respondents are of the opposite opinion. According to 29 percent of those polled, Kwaśniewski should go but only if he has an opportunity to present in Moscow Poland's position on the consequences of World War II. Twelve percent of those polled do not care whether the Polish president goes to Moscow or not, and 6 percent have no opinion on the issue.

The CBOS polling center also asked Poles' opinions on the present state of Polish-Russian relations. Fifty-five percent of those polled said these relations were neither good nor bad; 31 percent said they were bad. Only 6 percent of Poles assessed relations with Russia as good; 23 percent said it is possible for Polish-Russian relations to be based on friendship and partnership.

The survey was carried out on April 1-2 and 9-10 on a representative sample of 1,100 adult Poles.