President Komorowski greets Barack Obama at warsaw's international airport, Tuesday morning: photo - PAP/Radek Pietruszka
Obama was met at Warsaw's international airport by President Bronislaw Komorowski on Tuesday morning, where the US head of state was also greeted by American airman currently stationed in Poland for training exercises.
“It's going to be a great day in Polish-US relations,” US ambassador to Poland Stephen D. Mull tweeted ahead Obama's arrival.
US secretary of state John Kerry touched down in Poland two hours ahead of President Obama.
President Obama's Air Force One plane touched down at 09.50 CET on Tuesday: photo - PAP
After talks between the two presidents at Belweder Palace, Komorowski's residence in the Polish capital - where NATO's response to the crisis in Ukraine will be top of the agenda – Barack Obama will then have talks with Prime Minister Donald Tusk before going on to a special gala at the Royal Castle in the evening for the inaugural Solidarity Awards.
On Wednesday morning, Obama will be having talks with Ukraine's new president Petro Poroshenko, who will also be taking part in ceremonies on Castle Square in Warsaw celebrating 25 years since the historic 4 June 1989 elections won by Solidarity candidates which brought to an end four decades of communism in Poland.
Barack Obama during a meeting with Polish and American F-16 pilots at Warsaw Okecie airport: photo - PAP / Leszek Szymanski
This is Barack Obama's second trip to Poland, the first being in May 2011 when he attended a meeting of Central European leaders.
As in May 2011, the US president will be staying at the Marriott hotel and heavy security is in place in the Polish capital for the visit.
Later on Wednesday, the US president will fly to Brussels to attend a meeting of the G7 countries.
Obama's trip to Europe will culminate at events commemorating the 70th anniversary of the D-Day landings at Normandy, France.
“We are always glad to see President Obama in Europe,” Poland's foreign minister Radoslaw Sikorski has said.
In talks with Secretary of State John Kerry on Tuesday, Minister Sikorski will be pushing for a beefed up presence by NATO troops in the region.
“We simply think that the level of security across the NATO area should be more or less even,” he told CNN.
“And at the moment, we have NATO bases as legacies of the Cold War, in places where they were useful during the confrontation with the Soviet Union and it doesn't take into account the events of the last quarter of a century. And this should now be addressed,” Sikorski added. (pg)