The POLISH AMERICAN CONGRESS was established in 1944, and today represents the interests of 10 million Polish Americans. Individuals and organizations are members of the Congress. Because of the pandemic, this October 16, the POLISH AMERICAN CONGRESS will hold its first ever Council of National Directors Meeting via ZOOM. The Council of National Directors is the highest corporate governance authority of the Congress. At this meeting, a new slate of PAC Executive Committee Officers will be elected to serve a two years’ term.
The theme of this year’s Council of National Directors Meeting will be: America and Poland: Partners in Freedom. The meeting will explore new ways to persuade all of our fellow Americans, whether or not they may be of Polish ancestry, that a strong and truly sovereign Poland helps to protect United States national security interests in East Central Europe through NATO and promotes the American values of free enterprise and representative democracy through THE THREE SEAS INITIATIVE. Our goal is to strengthen both the bi-lateral relationship between the United States and Poland and people-to-people relations between Americans and Poles. The way to do this is to convince our fellow Americans that it is in THEIR SELF INTEREST to support a strong Poland.
NATO is the core of the bi-lateral relationship between Poland and the United States. NATO issues concern not only Poland, but the entire region of East Central Europe. This is why the Polish American Congress works on NATO issues with our regional partner organizations in the Central and East European Coalition. The Polish American Congress, as the largest member organization of the Central and East European Coalition, which represents the interests of 20 million United States citizens whose ancestral countries are between the Baltic and Black Seas, has been working to persuade Congress to strengthen NATO’s Eastern Flank in the face of Russian aggression. On April 22, 2021 the CEEC produced an influential policy event for members of Congress and their staffers that featured retired Lieutenant General Hodges, former commander of NATO forces now at the CENTER FOR EUROPEAN POLICY ANALYSIS, on what to expect at this September’s ZAPAD WAR GAMES, and Ian Brzezinski on how to move forward THE THREE SEAS INITIATIVE in the context of Biden Administration support for Nord Stream 2. The CEEC will follow up with a policy event on how to counter Russian aggression with top speakers on September 21, just after ZAPAD.
Like NATO, THE THREE SEAS INITIATIVE is also a regional issue. The POLISH AMERICAN CONGRESS works with the Central and East European Coalition to move THE THREE SEAS INITIATIVE from rhetoric to realization. Today, the POLISH AMERICAN CONGRESS with the CEEC is working to enact a Senate Resolution in support of THE THREE SEAS RESOLUTION to mirror the already enacted in 2019 House Resolution that authorized $1 billion for the European Energy Diversification Act.
The POLISH AMERICAN CONGRESSS also advocates for Poland on issues that are NOT regional, like World War II private property compensation controversies. Only the POLISH AMERICAN CONGRESS, no other Polish American political organizations, were invited by the State Department to two meetings to discuss the chapter on Poland in the State Department’s Report on Compliance with THE JUST ACT OF 2017.
It is important to note that the POLISH AMERICAN CONGRESS is the only Polish American political organization that holds membership of the influential Central and East European Coalition. Moreover, the POLISH AMERRICAN CONGRESS is the only Polish American political organization that has an office in Washington, DC. Our POLISH AMERICAN CONGRESS OFFICE is located at 1612 K Street, just around the corner from the White House and near the top research institutes, often called think tanks. Polish American Congress staffers participate in think tank events. No other Polish American political organization does this. K Street is where all the powerful interest groups have their headquarters, and this is where you will find the POLISH AMERICAN CONGRESS. This is why the POLISH AMERICAN CONGRESS is the top and the only serious advocacy organization for Poland in America.
Before you contribute funds to other Polish American political organizations, like the Coalition of Polish Americans, or the Polish American Strategic Initiative, that claim to defend Poland and the Poles before the United States Government and American public opinion, please compare what these organizations say they will do with what the POLISH AMERICAN CONGRESS has done and continues to do.