VZCZCXRO7016
OO RUEHBC RUEHDE RUEHIHL RUEHKUK
DE RUEHWR #1221 1451535
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
O 251535Z MAY 07
FM AMEMBASSY WARSAW
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 4363
INFO RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RHMFISS/CDR USCENTCOM MACDILL AFB FL PRIORITY
RUEKJCS/JOINT STAFF WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RUCNRAQ/IRAQ COLLECTIVE

C O N F I D E N T I A L WARSAW 001221 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/26/2007 
TAGS: PGOV PREL MARR PL IQ GG
SUBJECT: POLAND-IRAQ: FOREIGN MINISTER EXPRESSES CONCERN 
OVER POTENTIAL DOMESTIC POLITICAL FALL-OUT FROM CHANGES IN 
LEADERSHIP OF 
 
REF: A. STATE 064773 
     ¶B. WARSAW 1163 
 
Classified By: DCM Ken Hillas, reasons 1.4 (b) and (d) 
 
¶1. (C) Polish Foreign Minister Anna Fotyga called Ambassador 
in on Friday, May 25, to discuss the changes in the 
leadership structure of the Multi-National Division Center 
South (MND-CS) in Iraq, in particular the decision to create 
a new command (MND-C) that would assume command of MND-CS 
elements that are based at Camp Delta (Al-Kut), and 
consolidate Polish forces in Camp Echo in Al-Diwaniyah 
(Reftel A).  Fotyga said that there was some "difficulty" in 
understanding the situation in light of Ref A non-paper, and 
that she wanted some "clarification" of the developments, 
specifically the structure and operations of MND-C. 
Ambassador and Defense Attache reviewed the changes being 
made, with an emphasis on the operational necessity for the 
changes, and noted that the Polish Ministry of Defense and 
military leadership had agreed to the changes at the most 
recent Force Generation Conference. 
 
¶2.  (C)  Fotyga expressed surprise at the number of Georgian 
troops that would be sent to Iraq, noting it represented a 
significant proportion of Georgia's overall military 
strength.  After a few technical questions about the 
structure of the new command, and the apportionment of troops 
between MND-CS and MND-C, she noted that this change had the 
potential to cause internal political problems for the 
government, especially given the opposition to the Iraq and 
Afghanistan deployments by the Law and Justice (PiS) party's 
junior coalition partners.  However, she did not/not ask for 
a change in this decision.  She repeated twice that the 
political leadership "has to be careful" with regard to any 
decisions about Iraq, because the coalition partners would 
seek to exploit "every tiny item."  She noted she had 
discussed the matter "very softly" with Minister of Defense 
Szczyglo, and then closed discussion of the issue by asking 
our understanding.  The Ambassador assured her that the U.S. 
values Poland's role in Iraq and that the decisions made 
there were operationally based.  PolCouns added that the 
realignment would be beneficial to Georgia's NATO 
aspirations, to which Fotyga enthusiastically agreed. 
 
¶3.  (C)  Comment:  This was the first significant political 
reaction we have had to reftel demarche.  We believe, given 
the way Minister Fotyga presented the issues and then quickly 
moved on to other subjects, that the PiS leadership remains 
nervous about its coalition partners' eagerness to exploit 
any issue related to Iraq.  Fotyga's failure to request a 
reversal of Georgia/MND-C decision suggests the Polish 
Government has accepted this step, even if it harbors 
concerns. End Comment. 
ASHE