Barack Obama, Castle Sq. Warsaw, 4 June: photo - PAP/Pawel Supernak
“There is no change without risk, no progress without sacrifice, no freedom without solidarity,” the US president said at a ceremony in Warsaw's Castle Square, attended by leaders and presidents from 50 nations, including government heads from former communist states Hungary, Czech Republic, Slovakia and Lithuania.
Earlier, President Obama had met with Ukraine’s president-elect, Petro Poroshenko, who is also in Warsaw for the celebrations marking the first democratic elections since WWII in Poland on 4 June 1989.
photo - PAP/Pawel Supernak
As crowds gathered in Castle Square, some holding Polish flags, others Ukrainian flags, Obama said that, during the present crisis, the people of Ukraine are heirs to the Solidarity movement.
"When they tried to crush the protests with a steel fist, Poles laid flowers at the gate of the [Gdansk] shipyard. Today Ukrainians lay flowers in Maidan Independence Square,” Obama said.
On Russia's aggression against Ukraine, Obama said that “free nations cannot remain neutral: we must stand shoulder to shoulder with those who want freedom”.
from left: Presidents Komorowski, Obama, Poroshenko: photo - PAP
“Thank you Poland. Thank you for your courage, thank you for reminding the world that no matter how long the night, the desire for freedom and dignity never fades,” the US president said.
Polish president Bronislaw Komorowski thanked the people of the United States for “holding up aloft the proud banner of human rights, under which we fought for freedom”.
“This strengthened our confidence and faith” in the struggle against communism, Komorowski added.
"This is an opportunity to thank all those who had the courage to resist evil in times of communist totalitarianism,” said Poland's president, who was a Solidarity activist during the 1980s, and he gave special thanks to Lech Walesa, who was also at the cremony, for his leadership during the anti-communist protests and transformation to democracy.
Barack Obama flies into Brussels later on Wednesday for a G7 summit. (pg)
source: PAP