AMBASSADOR ASHE'S COURTESTY CALL ON NEW MINISTER

UNCLAS WARSAW 000146 SIPDIS DEPT FOR DKOSTELANCIK AND MSESSUMS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: ECON SENV PREL PL SUBJECT: AMBASSADOR ASHE'S COURTESTY CALL ON NEW MINISTER OF ENVIRONMENT SZYSZKO ¶1. Ambassador Ashe paid a courtesy call to Poland's Minister of the Environment Jan Szyszko on January 27. Ambassador Ashe began by talking of his admiration of Poland's national parks systems and his dedication to increasing the green spaces of Knoxville during his tenure as Mayor of the city. Ambassador Ashe also enthusiastically recounted his recent visit to Kampinos National Park and plans to visit parks in Northeast Poland this spring. Minister Szyszko and the Ambassador also discussed the sister park relationship between Kampinos and Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore. Minister Szyszko was aware of the relationship from his time as National Parks Director. ¶2. The conversation turned to the excellent condition and maintenance of many Polish national parks, and the fact that Poland has not overdeveloped its rural areas. Minister Szyszko attributed this, in part, to the traditional Polish philosophy that states national park land should be utilized for its inherent wealth, such as hunting or honey production. When asked by Ambassador Ashe about his chief goals as Minister, Szyszko continued on this theme, stating that he hoped to use national resources to create jobs. He is, in fact, a specialist in this field, and stated that Poland produces very high quality natural foods, and in addition, has some of the best soil conditions of any country in Europe. Szyszko hopes to make Polish food products competitive across Europe, and will ask the EU to help in this endeavor by recognizing the link between environmental conservation and the utilization of environmental resources. ¶3. Ambassador Ashe mentioned that U.S. national parks and local parks are economically beneficial because they promote tourism and lead to secondary business opportunities in the surrounding areas. He mentioned the poor state of Poland's road system, and stated that if the GOP could improve this infrastructure the same opportunities would eventually materialize in the Polish countryside. Szyszko agreed wholeheartedly with this comment and cited GOP plans to invest heavily in road construction, but also stated that the GOP wanted to avoid building roads that could lead to environmental degradation. ¶4. Ambassador Ashe asked Szyszko if he had any plans to visit the U.S. and offered help in setting up meetings with the appropriate USG agencies. Szyszko was grateful but did not foresee having enough time to travel to the U.S. in the near future due to his busy schedule. He did mention that as a long-time reader of Jack London's works he would someday like to see the Yukon River in Alaska. ASHE