Mark Brzezinski on Polish-U.S. alliance: this friendship is closer now than ever before

Michał Sznajder: We are at the meadows of the National Stadium in Warsaw, at the military picnic marking Poland's Armed Forces Day. Here we have representatives of the Polish Armed Forces, we have Polish armaments - equipment owned by the Polish Armed Forces, but also here are the Americans, their equipment, and the U.S. Ambassador to Poland - Mark Brzezinski.

Mark Brzezinski: Hi Michał, thank you for having me here. I am so excited to be here. It’s a huge honour for me to be here today. To have the American military participating in Poland’s Armed Forces Day here in Warsaw is a huge deal. 

Michał Sznajder: One could argue that the strength of the military is not a result of its might, of the number of soldiers and equipment, but also the alliances, the friendships that are forged. So what is the significance of the American Armed Forces being here today?

Mark Brzezinski: Well, the significance is what you see on the ground and in the air. What do I mean? You have the state-of-the-art technology with the Abrams tank, and Poland is receiving 250 Abrams tanks to keep Poland safe and to keep Poland secure. But what is particularly special is what is happening overhead. For the first time ever, in terms of Poland’s armed services, today America’s top military aircraft – the F35 Lightning - is what it’s called, will be participating in Poland’s armed services day parade. And that F35 is state-of-the-art technology to provide stealth, to provide an ability to fly below the radar, because lightning can come from anywhere, the F35 can come out of anywhere. And our adversaries know that. 

Michał Sznajder: Having an aircraft like that flying over parade, that’s not an everyday affair, right?

Mark Brzezinski: No, it’s very special, Michał, to have the F35 flying over Poland’s military day parade. It is virtually unique and it’s the first for Poland. And I have to tell something, it’s poignant, it’s personally so meaningful to me and the U.S. embassy team, because it wasn’t too long ago that this very ground, that Polish soil, had Soviet troops marching on it. Not American troops. And we are meshed together, we have our highest technology and the closest meshing together of our troops that we have ever had in history. Let me quote President Biden, Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, Secretary of State Tony Blinken: this Polish-American friendship is closer now than ever before and that’s especially because of the extremely significant military collaboration that we do day in and day out to keep Poland and NATO secure. 

Michał Sznajder: What’s the message to take away for the adversaries who might be looking at this and thinking: there’s a close cooperation going on there, Polish-American?

Mark Brzezinski: The takeaway for our adversaries is that we don’t seek fight, we don’t want to have to fight you, but if we did, this what you would face. Do the math. It would be: make the right choices in life. It’s the good advice my father used to say: make the right choices in life, and that is the message that I would take away from an F35 flying over Warsaw and an Abrams tank on the ground. The amazing men and women of the U.S. military who are participating here, who are ready for every contingency. And let me say to the people of Poland that American and NATO military has thought through every possible contingency. Every possible way of doing something that’s troublesome, we have thought through. We are ready. We don’t seek a fight, but we are ready for everything. 

Michał Sznajder: Should anyone make the wrong decision, to kind of work upon your quote, what is your message to the Polish people who have the strong feeling inside them that in past we have been left to fend for ourselves?

Mark Brzezinski: Yes. Poles have a history when they have been left behind. When the people were dancing in the streets in London with the end of WWII, Poland was left behind the Iron Curtain. That will not happen again. President Biden has deployed the first ever permanent U.S. military facility in the eastern flank - in Poland, in Poznań. With the V Corps headquarters – U.S. Army’s V Corps headquarters – that is deployed there permanently. And you see the equipment, you see joint training, you see the exercises we’re doing – this is not just a photo op. This is a meshing together of two high-caliber militaries that are getting closer and closer every day. 

Michał Sznajder: Sir, my final question. Such meshing is not only a result of decisions made by politicians, by officials, but also of what you often talk about – the significance of shared values.

Mark Brzezinski: Absolutely. Shared values are the reason why the U.S. military deploys abroad. The U.S. military deploys abroad not to protect a particular political leader or political party. We deploy abroad to protect the rule of law, to protect democracy, to protect free and fair elections, to protect equality and freedom of speech. Those are American values. America embraces equality, America embraces human rights. And when I see our warriors, the American men and women here – that is what they are doing every single day. American soldiers are on duty 24/7, basically in terms of how they are deployed, and they’re here to protect values. But I will also say to the Polish people on behalf of President Biden: we are proud of you, we are so proud of what you have produced, of the society you have produced that is flourishing right now. We are so honored to join you on Armed Forces Day. It is our honor to stand in collective defense with you, and the best is yet to come in this relationship. 

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