The Prime Minister of Poland, Donald Tusk, is on a one-day visit to Moscow. He's to meet with the Russian President Putin and has already met Prime Minister Viktor Zubkov. Before the visit Tusk said he's strongly committed to improving Russian-Polish relations.
During the meeting with his Russian counterpart Donald Tusk said that “the main thing is to guarantee mutual trust” between the two countries and this statement received full support from Viktor Zubkov. The main issue to be discussed is the deployment of the U.S. Anti-Missile Defence shield in Poland – plans that Russia considers to be a threat to its security. Russia’s talks with the EU on strategic partnership will be mentioned. The negotiations were blocked by the previous Polish government but have resumed under Tusk. Tusk is about to talk about the Baltic Sea pipe line, which goes to Germany bypassing Poland. He is expected to propose another project – convenient and cheaper for both sides. Poland is Russia's leading trade partner in Central and Eastern Europe, as bilateral trade between the countries was worth an estimated $US 20 billion in 2007. So such factor as the balance of trade will also be discussed. Tusk is going to lay a wreath to the grave of the Unknown Soldier and the Memorial to the Victims of Political Repression. A meeting with Russian social organisations' representatives is also on the agenda.