ACCESSION NUMBER:352744
FILE ID:TXT301
DATE:07/13/94
TITLE:CLINTON SPEAKS TO POLISH PARLIAMENT (07/13/94)
TEXT:*94071301.TXT
CLINTON SPEAKS TO POLISH PARLIAMENT
(VOA Editorial)  (390)
(Following is an editorial, broadcast by the Voice of America July 13,
reflecting the views of the U.S. government.)

President Bill Clinton recently paid tribute to the struggle of the Polish
people to build an enduring democracy and a free-market economy.  Speaking
to the Polish parliament, Clinton said that the goal of the United States
is an integrated Europe of sovereign free nations.  To that end, U.S.
policy will be guided by three principles:  supporting democracy, advancing
free markets, and meeting new security challenges.

In many parts of the world, militant nationalists have burst on the scene,
promoting ethnic hatred, religious division, or anti-Semitism.  In the
fight against these forces, democracy is an indispensable ally.  Democracy
checks the ambitions of would-be tyrants and aggressors.  It nurtures civil
society, respect for human rights and the habits of tolerance.

Democracy and free markets remain the only proven path to prosperity and
peace.  Five years ago, Poland discarded dictatorship and a failed
centrally planned economy.  The Polish people stepped into the unknown and
started to build a free-market economy.  Doubters said it could not be
done, but the Polish people have proved the naysayers wrong.  Poland's
reforms, said Clinton, are working.  Hyper-inflation has ended, the
currency has been stabilized, and state-owned enterprises are being
privatized.  As a result, Poland has achieved one of Europe's highest
economic growth rates.

The United States has stood with Poland since its democratic re-birth and
will continue to support Poland now.  The United States is the number one
1nvestor in Poland, with more than 1,000 million dollars invested.  In
addition, Clinton announced creation of the Polish Partners Fund, which
will make 65 million dollars available for new investment.

But economic and political reforms will succeed only if Poland is secure.
Poland, said Clinton, should never again have its fate decided for it by
others.  No democracy in Eastern Europe should ever be consigned to a gray
area or a buffer zone.  As a member of NATO's Partnership for Peace, Poland
has been in the vanguard of efforts to create a unified and peaceful
Europe.  As President Clinton said, the Partnership for Peace means that
the Iron Curtain will not be replaced with a veil of indifference.

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