It is with a deep sense of grief that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Poland reports of the death of Orlando Zapata Tamayo, the Cuban political prisoner, who passed away in Havana on Feb. 23rd 2010 following a hunger strike that lasted two months. A renowned Cuban human rights activist and an Amnesty International prisoner of conscience, Orlando Zapata Tamayo has been held prisoner since March 2003. He began a hunger strike on Dec. 3rd 2009 in protest against being treated on a par with common criminals.

Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski travelled to Kiev on Feb. 25th at the invitation of the Ukrainian side to take part in the inauguration of Viktor Yanukovych as Ukraine’s new president. Minister Sikorski participated in a session of the Supreme Council of Ukraine, held on the occasion of the inauguration and followed by an official reception given by the Ukrainian authorities.

Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski chaired the Polish delegation to the General Affairs Council and Foreign Affairs Council in Brussels on 22nd February 2010. At the General Affairs Council delegates discussed the agenda of the 25-26 March 2010 session of the European Council and revised the climate change state of play following the Copenhagen Conference.

Pakistan’s police confirmed they have arrested the prime suspects behind the September 2008 abduction of the Polish geologist Piotr Stańczak. Ever since the abduction, the authorities of Poland and Pakistan have been working closely together in order to hunt down and sentence those responsible for the kidnapping and death of the Polish geologist.

On Friday, Feb. 12th, Belarus’s Foreign Minister Sergey Martinov paid a working visit to Warsaw at the invitation of Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski. During talks Ministers covered a number of bilateral issues, such as economic, energy, cultural and agricultural cooperation. Special emphasis was laid on the question of the Polish minority in Belarus.

Polish architect Stefan Kuryłowicz has been selected by United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon from among a number of the world’s outstanding architects to serve as a member of the Advisory Board for the United Nations Capital Master Plan, which is the five-year historic renovation of the United Nations Headquarters in New York.

On Wednesday, February 10th, Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski made a telephone call to High Representative for the Common Foreign and Security Policy Baroness Catherine Ashton to discuss the recent steps by Belarus’s authorities against the Union of Poles in Belarus.

Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski congratulated Foreign Minister Kanat Saudabayev on his appointment as Chairman-in-Office of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe. Minister Radosław Sikorski voiced a conviction that Kazakhstan, a country actively participating in the OSCE work and playing a key role in Central Asia, will ensure that the Organization runs smoothly and makes a significant contribution to inspiring new activities within the OSCE.

Delegations from Poland and the United States met in Warsaw on February 8, 2010 for a session of the bilateral Strategic Cooperation Consultative Group (SCCG).  The Polish delegation was headed by Deputy Foreign Minister Jacek Najder.  Ellen Tauscher, Under-Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security, led the U.S. delegation.

It is with a great sense of loss that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs bids farewell to Krzysztof Skubiszewski – the first Foreign Minister of the free Poland.

Celebrations commemorating the 60th anniversary of establishing diplomatic relations between Poland and Vietnam were held on February 5th 2010 in Warsaw. The celebrations were hosted by MFA Secretary of State Jan Borkowski and attended by Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam to Poland Nguyen Van Xuong.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs reports that Poland has sent 38 short-term observers under the international observation mission to Ukraine’s presidential election runoff, due to take place on February 7th 2010. The international election observers have been registered by Kiev’s Central Election Commission. The first round of Ukraine’s elections, which was held on January 17th 2010, was observed by 25 Foreign Ministry observers.

Polish-Chinese political consultations at Vice Foreign Minister level were held in Warsaw on February 1st 2010 between MFA Under-Secretary of State Paweł Wojciechowski and Deputy Foreign Minister of the People’s Republic of China Zhang Zhijun.

A meeting of Weimar Triangle Ministers for European Affairs was held in Warsaw on February 1st 2010. The meeting was attended by MFA Secretary of State for European Affairs Mikołaj Dowgielewicz, Germany’s Minister of State for European Affairs Werner Hoyer, and France’s Secretary of State for the EU Pierre Lellouche.