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I.Poland’sForeignPolicyBefore1989
UnitedWorkers,Party(PZPR)oftheassumptionthat"warwasinevitable”ush-
eredinanewdoctrineofpeacefulcoexistencecomprisingelementsofbothrivalry
andcooperation.Therivalrywasmanifestedinideologicalconfrontationandthe
armsrace,whilethecooperationtooktheformofeffortstoobtaincreditandnew
technologies.TheThirdWorldwasthefieldonwhichthehistoricvictoryoverthe
FirstWorldwastobeachieved.Thosedevelopingcountriesoptingtofollowthe
"socialistpathtodevelopment”couldcountonsolidarityandsupportonthepartof
thecommunistcountries,Polandincluded.
3.InPolandtherewasevenultimatelyadoctrinalcodificationofrelationswith
theoutsideworldsetoutinrelevantprovisionsoftheConstitutionofthePeople,s
Republic.Thiswasamendedandupdatedin1976,twooftheprovisionsintroduced
beingthesourceofmajorcontroversyandprotestswithinthedemocraticopposi-
tion.Thefirst(Article3)provisionconcernedtheleadroleassignedtothePolish
UnitedWorkers,Partywithinthestate,thisrepresentingconstitutionalconfirma-
tionoftheParty,smonopolyonpower.Thesecond(Article6)provisionhadregard
toexternalrelations,providingthatthePeople,sRepublic"strengthensfriendship
andcooperationwiththeUSSRandothersocialistcountries”and„developsits
relationswithcountrieshavingdifferentpoliticalsystems,basedontheprinciples
ofpeacefulcoexistenceandcooperation”.Whatwascharacteristicherewasthat
thetwoprovisionsappearedatatimewhensocietyasawholewasincreasingly
contestinganddisplayingitsoppositionto–ifnotyetthesystemasawhole(at
leastnotopenly)–thenatleastthemeansofgovernmentandeconomicpolicythat
werefailingtosatisfythepeople,sneeds,aswellasthedependentrelationship
vis-à-vistheUSSR,whichwasheldresponsibleforthebadsituation.Thechanges
werealsobeingmadeatatimewhenthoseinpowerwereseekingtoshoreuptheir
legitimacythrougharaisingoflevelsofconsumptioninthewakeofthepolitical
crisisofDecember1970.ThewaveofeventstakingplaceinGdańskandelse-
wherealongtheBalticcoasthadultimatelymanagedtocarryoffGomułkaandhis
croneys,bringingtopowerintheirsteadagenerationofwhatweresaidtobemore
"pragmatic”partyactivistsbentonreformingtheeconomicsystem.
AkeyprerequisiteforthereformandmodernisationinquestionwasthatPoland
openupmorefullytotheWest–asthesourceofcredit,technology,investment
andconsumergoods.ThewholemovewasfacilitatedbythesignatureinDecember
1970ofanagreementtonormaliserelationswiththeFederalRepublicofGermany.
Byvirtueofthis,thethenChancellorWillyBrandtaffirmedBonn,srecognitionof
theOder-Neisseborderlineasfinal(notwithstandinganyinternalinterpretations).
Diplomaticrelationswerealsorestored,andcontactsandexchangesintheeco-
nomicspherebegantodevelopdynamically.Newheadofthecommunistparty
EdwardGierektalkedthesamelanguageasGermany,spragmaticnewChancellor
HelmutSchmidt.ClosercooperationwithFrancewasalsoinitiatedanditwasper-
hapsnotwithoutsignificancethatGierek–aminerfromSilesia–hadspentsome
ofhisformativeyearsatFrenchcoalfaces.TherelationswithParisdeveloping