WARSAW, Poland — American officials visited Poland on Sunday to celebrate a new initiative called “Liberty Road,” aimed at remembering the two nations’ shared sacrifice and history in World War II and their fight against communism.
The initiative launched with a ceremony at the Warsaw Uprising Museum, and featured remarks from Poland’s Deputy Prime Minister Mariusz Błaszczak, U.S. Ambassador to Poland Mark Brzezinski, Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D-OH) and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley, and Jan Ołdakowski, director of the museum.
The launch was held on 78th anniversary of Operation Frantic, in which U.S. B-17s and P-51s on September 18, 1944, attempted a resupply of dozens of Polish insurgents who fought the Nazi German occupation force for 63 days.
Although the resupply was largely unsuccessful, due in part to the Soviet army trying to prevent resupply of the insurgent fighters, speakers noted it gave the Polish people a boost in morale.
Photograph of a Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress used by the United States Air Force during the Second World War. (Universal History Archive/ Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
The speakers noted the shared fight continued today against the Russian invasion of Ukraine, which is on Poland’s western border.
Błaszczak, who is Poland’s defense minister, said Russia was attempting to “recreate the empire of evil.”
“We are building ways of freedom now, supporting our neighbors from Ukraine. We are doing it consistently because the independence of Ukraine means freedom of our country, Poland, but also freedom of Europe,” he said.
Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D-OH) and Director of the Warsaw Uprising Museum Jan Ołdakowski launch the Liberty Road initiative. (Kristina Wong/Breitbart News)
Poland has taken in nearly three million Ukrainian refugees fleeing the war.
Błaszczak also recalled Poland joining America’s fight after it was attacked on September 11, 2001. “We treat our actions as an allied commitment, because when the United States was attacked on September 11, 2001, the Polish Army was ready to support the US military in missions. We take our allied obligations very seriously,” he said.
Kaptur, who was the driving force behind the creation of the Liberty Road project and whose mother is Polish, said in opening remarks, “Across all stripes and creeds, the American people have forged a deep, trusted and lasting friendship with the people of Poland.”
Brzezinski said Milley’s presence at the ceremony — his second visit to Poland since the Russian invasion on February 24 — was a “visible sign of the U.S. commitment to defend every inch of NATO territory, including Poland.”
File/ Italy: Mustangs On The prowl over Europe—Mustang fighters (P-51’s) of the U. S. Army 15th Air Force fighter command prowl the skies over Italy. Note the new teardrop canopy which gives the pilot near perfect visibility. (Bettmann/Getty)
“And that’s particularly relevant to this ceremony and a reminder of the long-standing and multi-dimensional Polish-American partnership founded in mutual security,” Brzezinski added.
“Once again, the United States and Poland find themselves in the common struggle against tyranny, and the world has come together to fully support Ukraine,” Milley said. “The cost of liberty is always high…standing up to aggressors is never cheap. It always requires extraordinary sacrifices in blood and treasure, and the war in Ukraine is no exception.”
Follow Breitbart News’s Kristina Wong on Twitter, Truth Social, or on Facebook.
COMMENTS
Please let us know if you're having issues with commenting.