Parisian Cultures Views on Eastern Europe as a Factor in Contemporary Polish Foreign Policy

When analyzing events which unfolded in the Ukraine during the final months of 2004 and the involvement of Polish politicians and public opinion in the struggle for the preservation of the democratic character of presidential elections, a question arises regarding the connection of their actions with the political projects of Jerzy Giedroyć, the founder and sole editor of an influential magazine and a centre of political thought, which was Culture, published in Maisons-Laffitte, near Paris, in the years 1947–2000. Historians and political scientists rightly emphasize the fact that the „Eastern doctrine”, also known as the ULB doctrine (from the abbreviation of „Ukraine, Lithuania, Belarus”), has been a constant element of Polish foreign policy since 1989. Generally speaking, Giedroyć was convinced that nationalist impulses would eventually destroy the Russian empire from within, and a sovereign Poland would gain three new neighbours in the East: Ukraine, Lithuania and Belarus. This process was expected to take place in the near future, as foreseen by Culture contributors who called on the émigrés from Eastern Europe to work together in laying solid foundations for the future partnership.