NEW DEPUTY DEFMINS: MACIEREWICZ STIRS UP

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 WARSAW 001798 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/24/2016 TAGS: PGOV PREL PINR PL SUBJECT: NEW DEPUTY DEFMINS: MACIEREWICZ STIRS UP CONTROVERSY, WHILE WINID GETS TO WORK REF: A. WARSAW 01171 ¶B. WARSAW 01610 Classified By: PolCouns Mary T. Curtin for reasons 1.4(b) and (d). ¶1. (C) SUMMARY: Newly appointed MOD U/S Antoni Macierewicz, responsible for transformation of the military intelligence services (REF A),has triggered an uproar by accusing "most former Polish foreign ministers" of being Soviet agents. PM Kaczynski who forced the appointment over DefMin Sikorski's objections, has allowed Macierewicz to stay on for now, apparently favoring his anti-Communist agenda over domestic political stability. In contrast, Boguslaw Winid, the new MOD U/S responsible for international cooperation and former Polish DCM in Washington, has solid foreign policy credentials and close ties with Sikorski. Though he lacks strong backing from Kaczynski or PiS, Winid's pragmatic approach and knowledge of the U.S. should have a salutary effect on Embassy relations with the MOD. END SUMMARY. -------------- Macierewicz: Anti-Communist Firebrand -------------- ¶2. (C) Less than a month after being appointed Undersecretary at MOD, Antoni Macierewicz has already triggered controversy. In an August 20 TV interview, Macierewicz claimed that "A majority of former (Polish) foreign ministers were agents of the Soviet special services." He then added that all of Poland's former FMs had acted in the interest of "post Soviet structures" (a reference to Russia) when they signed a letter criticizing President Lech Kaczynski for his failure to attend the Weimar Triangle Summit in July 2006. DefMin Radek Sikorski questioned Macierewicz's right as a senior intelligence official with top secret clearances to make such allegations in public, and demanded a written explanation, while Minister for Special Services Zbigniew Wasserman said publicly he had chastised Macierewicz. PM Jaroslaw Kaczynski called Macierewicz on the carpet to explain his remarks but then apparently accepted the explanation, as Macierewicz has been permitted to stay on. When asked by the press what he had told the PM, Macierewicz simply replied that the information was "confidential," and the PM has also kept silent. ¶3. (C) Macierewicz's bombshell accusations have resonated among the political elite and throughout government. Former Defense Minister and deputy speaker of the parliament Bronislaw Komorowski (PO) spoke for many in the opposition when he strongly criticized Macierewicz and called for his immediate dismissal. The incident has also had a severe effect on morale among career diplomats at the Polish MFA, who were already suffering from their loss of influence on government policy. MFA Americas Director Henryk Szlajfer told PolCouns that Deputy Minister Barbara Tuge-Erecinska led a group of senior career officials to a disappointing meeting with FM Fotyga, who refused to address their requests that she speak out in defense of her predecessors. ¶4. (C) Appointed by PM Kaczynski on July 22, 2006, Macierewicz is managing the ongoing liquidation of the Military Information Services (WSI) and the creation of the new, separate Military Intelligence Service (SWW) and Military Counter Intelligence Service (SKW) which should come into being October 1, 2006 (Ref A). Macierewicz also heads the verification committee vetting former and current WSI officers applying for the new services. The vetting is meant to exclude both those with ties to the pre-1989 regime and those engaging in "illegal commercial activities" (corruption). Press reports indicate that some WSI officers have implicated colleagues in past scandals - ample material for further political inquisitions. ¶5. (C) Macierewicz has a history of witch hunting, and until his appointment was seen by many as almost paranoid in his conspiracy theories about Poland's recent history. While Interior Minister in the short-lived 1992 government of former PM Jan Olszewski (now an adviser to both President Lech Kaczynski and the verification committee),Macierewicz leaked to the press a list of 66 presumed former informants of the Communist era Security Service (SB). The political uproar over the "Macierewicz list" brought down the Olszewski government and weakened the Solidarity coalition then in power. The "Macierewicz list" included many well known opposition activists of the day, lending some credence to charges that Macierewicz's "crusade" against former communists was actually a pretext for attacking rivals in the Solidarity camp. ¶5. (U) Macierewicz has led a number of strongly conservative and nationalistic groups. Currently he is chairman of the Patriotic Movement, a political party he established with Jan Olszewski before the 2005 parliamentary elections that garnered only 1.5% of the votes and thus failed to enter the Sejm. Previously he was chairman of the National Catholic Movement and a member of the National Christian Union. ¶6. (U) Macierewicz has held various government offices. He served in the Sejm for three terms: 1991-1993, 1997-2001 and 2001-2005. In 2001 he was elected from the League of Polish Families (LPR) list and sat on the European Committee (2001-2004),Foreign Affairs Committee (2001-2005) and the Investigative Committee for the PKN Orlen corruption case (2001-2005). From 1997-2001 he chaired the Sejm Intelligence Committee. ¶7. (U) Macierewicz was active in the opposition under Communist rule. He was arrested and interned in 1968 and was later one of the 14 original founders of the Committee for the Defense of Workers (KOR),a Solidarity pre-cursor. Macierewicz was born in 1948 and graduated from the University of Warsaw in 1971. He is married with a daughter and two grandchildren. -------------- -------------- Winid: U.S.-savvy Diplomat and Sikorski Confidante -------------- -------------- ¶8. (C) PM Kaczynski appointed Boguslaw Winid as Undersecretary of Defense for International Relations on August 11, 2006. In contrast to Macierewicz, Winid is pragmatic and professional, an experienced diplomat who came to the job from five years as DCM in Washington. Winid is close to DefMin Sikorski, who lobbied hard for the nomination despite reported opposition within the ruling Law and Justice party (PiS). Winid will be responsible for essentially all contacts with foreign partners, including the U.S., and his relationship with Sikorski and experience in Washington suggest that he will be a valuable contact. ¶9. (U) Winid's diplomatic career has America written all over it. From 2001-2006 he served as Deputy Chief of Mission at the Polish Embassy in Washington DC. From 1998-2001 he headed the Americas Department at MFA, where he was also Deputy Director in 1998. From 1992-1997 he served as First Secretary and later Counselor of Embassy in Washington with a SIPDIS focus on congressional relations.. Winid completed his diplomatic training at the Hoover Institute at Stanford University in 1991, the same year in which he joined the MFA Department of North and South America. ¶10. (U) Winid has an illustrious academic career. In 1991, he defended his doctoral dissertation on inter-war Polish-U.S. diplomatic relations. He studied at Indiana University 1988-89, following a teaching appointment at Warsaw University's American Studies Center. Winid graduated from Warsaw University in 1984 after having written his thesis on British participation in the Crimean War. He is married to Beata, a history teacher, and has a son Albert in high school. Winid speaks English (fluently) and Russian. He was born on November 3, 1960. -------------- COMMENT -------------- ¶11. (C) Macierewicz's irresponsible behavior and attacks on Poland's pre-2006 foreign policy apparatus has created a poisonous atmosphere among diplomats and politicians, including some Foreign Affairs Committee chairman Pawel Zalewski (PiS) and Deputy PM Andrzej Lepper of Self-Defense (SO). Since PM Kaczynski has left the whole question open by pointedly declining to address the substance of Macierewicz's allegations, this matter is far from over and the effect on MFA morale may worsen. The episode is also instructive of DefMin Sikorski's ambiguous relationship with PM Kaczynski and the PiS leadership. It was Kaczynski who summoned Macierewicz and Wasserman who scolded him, while Sikorski was left asking merely for a letter. ¶12. (C) At the same time, Winid's appointment bodes well for the U.S., bringing solid foreign policy advice to Sikorski's team. He is someone the Embassy can work with and he has Sikorski's ear. In addition, Winid has an excellent relationship with key Embassy contacts at MFA, including U/S Witold Waszczykowski, Americas Director Henryk Szlajfer and Security Policy Director Robert Kupiecki. He understand the way Washington works, although like Sikorski he seems at times to overestimate the extent to which he can "deliver Washington" to the government leadership. END COMMENT ASHE