Polish foreign policy reconsidered : challenges of independence

the long version

This timely collection of essays surveys the evolution of Polish foreign policy since the collapse of communism. The authors assembled here look at this evolution in the context of the country's history, its geopolitical constraints, and the changing post-Cold War international system. They explore Polish domestic debates after 1989 and their impact on the emerging consensus in Warsaw vis-a-vis foreign policy priorities. They discuss the country's security policy and ongoing military reform so as to assess the prospects for Poland's inclusion in the Western security system, especially NATO. They analyze both Poland's relations with Western Europe, particularly Germany, and its emerging Ostpolitik toward Russia and the Soviet successor states. The book concludes with an assessment of the degree to which Polish foreign policy has moved away from its historically determined formulas and the extent to which it has remained driven by the nation's past. Together, the various chapters create a multidimensional look at Poland and the future of its foreign policy initiatives and provide an indispensible book for scholars interested in Poland.