The visit will involve difficult talks, Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski told the media. In addition to the conflict in Georgia, key matters for discussion will include social, political and economic relations, both bilateral and within the EU framework. The US missile shield, to be built in Poland and the Czech Republic, is another divisive issue on the agenda.
Polish authorities have publicly stated their desire to maintain good relations with Russia. "We want to be in the part of the EU that demands a decisive and clear stance with respect to Russia. But Poland wants to be a successful player and cannot afford to be isolated," Prime Minister Donald Tusk said.
A new source of controversy arose last week in reports by Russian daily Novye Izvestia that Russian authorities plan to move the Polish embassy inMoscow from its current city-center location to a less prestigious district. The reason, according to Russian foreign ministry sources quoted by the daily, is a lack of evidence that the plot was ever granted to Poland. In response, Polish officials intend to bring up the question of Russian real estate in Warsaw during Lavrov's visit.
President Lech Kaczyński's view on the matter is that it is necessary to take up a dialogue with Russia, regardless of the countries' differing views, the head of the Foreign Affairs Office of the Presidential Chancellery, Mariusz Handzlik, told Dziennik daily.
But while Lavrov is scheduled to meet with Tusk and Sikorski, no request for a meeting with the president had yet been made as WBJ went to press.
