Poland’s double game strategy during the US-Iranian crises (1979–88)

ABSTRACT

The following article shows the Polish authorities’ perspective towards the United States’ actions undertaken during the crises in Iran and examines the manner in which Warsaw flexibly responded to political tensions between Washington and Teheran in the last years of the Cold War (1979–88): the Islamic Revolution; the Iranian Hostage Crisis; and the Iran-Iraq War. The Polish government pragmatically manoeuvered between Iran and the superpowers for economic gain and yet carefully maintained the veneer of neutrality for both political and economic ends, in spite of Moscow’s noose ever tightening on Warsaw’s neck. The article demonstrates how and why smaller, isolated nations in the late Cold War era were able to build relationships regardless of the challenges and obstacles they faced.

KEYWORDS:

• US-Iranian relations
• Polish-Iranian relations
• Poland-US relations
• Islamic Revolution
• Iranian Hostage Crisis
• Iran-Iraq War

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Notes

¹ “Łaszcz to Pierzchała,” Teheran: 30 January 1979, sig. 2/8, Ministry of Foreign Affairs Archives (MFAA), Warsaw, Poland.

² Richard J. Aldrich, The Hidden Hand (London:  John Murray, 2002), 468–70.

³ Bledar Prifiti, US Foreign Policy in the Middle East. The Case for Continuity (Seminole: St. Petersburg College, 2017), 154.

⁴ Aldrich, The Hidden Hand, 468–70; See more: Stephen Kinzer, All the Shah’s Men. An American Coup and the Roots of Middle East Terror (New Jersey: Wiley, 2003) In 2018, the National Archives at the George Washington University published a full CIA report that revealed new facts about the operation itself and its implementation. Parts of the report (called: Zendebad, Shah!) had been previously published (in 2000 and 2011), with some fragments redacted. Subsequently, declassified sections describe in detail the correlation (or lack thereof) between CIA-conducted operations and analytical activities; https://nsarchive.gwu.edu/briefing-book/iran/2018-02-12/cia-declassifies-more-zendebad-shah-internal-study-1953-iran-coup (accessed 30 March 2018).

⁵ Ervand Abrahamian, Historia współczesnego Iranu(Warsaw: Książka i Wiedza, 2011), 207; Mark Blake, Iran: The Untold Story (New York: Democracy Press, 2012), 24–5, 529, 537; John L. Gaddis, Zimna wojna (Kraków: Znak, 2009), 197; Babak Ganji, Politics of Confrontation (London, New York: I. B. Tauris, 2012), 150–1.

⁶ Rashid Khalidi, Sowing Crisis (Boston: Beacon Press, 2009), 72–3.

⁷ Yevgeny Primakov, Russia and the Arabs (New York: Basic Books, 2009), 309–10.

⁸ Andrzej Skrzypek, “Dyplomacja polska między Wschodem a Zachodem,” in Historia dyplomacji polskiej, ed. Wojciech Materski and Waldemar Michowicz (Warsaw: PISM, 2010), 783.

⁹ Jakub Tyszkiewicz, Rozbijanie monolitu (Warsaw: PWN, 2015), 106–84.

¹⁰ Skrzypek, “Dyplomacja polska między Wschodem a Zachodem,” 779, 782.

¹¹ Ibid., 760, 792–3.

¹² Tyszkiewicz, Rozbijanie monolitu, 386, 387.

¹³ Skrzypek, “Dyplomacja polska między Wschodem a Zachodem,” 798–9, 810–1, 818–20.

¹⁴ Reagan punished Poland’s government with numerous sanctions. He suspended one tenth of the already granted loan of US$71 million, rejected the Polish request for membership in the International Monetary Fund (IMF), and stopped the export of goods covered by Coordinating Committee for Multilateral Export Control (COCOM) ; Polish ships could no longer fish inside US borders. Sanctions negatively affected the Polish economy, but had negligible political impact; Tyszkiewicz, Rozbijanie monolitu, 458, 520.

¹⁵ Skrzypek, “Dyplomacja polska między Wschodem a Zachodem,” 829.

¹⁶ Tyszkiewicz, Rozbijanie monolitu, 477.

¹⁷ Andrzej Paczkowski, “Dyplomacja polska czasów kryzysu,” in Historia dyplomacji, 849, 853; Skrzypek, “Dyplomacja polska między Wschodem a Zachodem,” 822.

¹⁸ “Raport Polityczny,” Teheran: 4 May 1982, Dept. 5, sig. 26/86, 7–9, MFAA; “Filipowicz to Turbański,” Teheran: 25 November 1982, sig. 26/84, MFAA; “Współpraca PZPR,” Warsaw: December 1983, sig. LXXV–17, 4, WZ KC PZPR, CAMR; “Założenia programowe,” Warsaw: 27 December 1984, 1, WZ KC PZPR, CAMR.

¹⁹ “Polish-Iranian economic relations” were regulated by a long-term trade and payment agreement of 1974 and an agreement on crude oil supplies in the years 1978–82, concluded in 1977; “Warsaw to DS,” 30 August 1977, NARA AAD, https://aad.archives.gov/aad/createpdf?rid=185250&dt=2532&dl=1629 (accessed March 5, 2019); “Współpraca gospodarcza,” Warsaw: 1979, sig. LXXXVI–172, 2, WZ KC PZPR, CAMR; “Pilna Notatka,” Warsaw: 1979, Dept. 5, sig. 23/85, 4, MFAA; “Raport Polityczny,” Teheran: 1 January 1978–22 March 1979, 16, MFAA; “Narada partyjno-zawodowa,” Warsaw: 15 March 1979, sig. LXXVI–172, 4, 5, WZ KC PZPR, CAMR; “Zebranie POP,” Teheran: March 1979, sig. LXXVI–172, 3, WZ KC PZPR, CAMR.

²⁰ Prifiti, US Foreign Policy in the Middle East, 154.

²¹ “Raport Polityczny,” 1 January 1978, Dep. 5, 1979, sig. 23/85, 13–5, 22, MFAA; Piotr Długołęcki and Jerzy Kochanowski, “Polskie Dokumenty Dyplomatyczne 1979,” Warsaw: PISM, 2014, doc. 8, Warsaw: 5 January 1979; Marian Orzechowski in discussion with the author, September 2015.

²² “Notatka o Iranie,” Warsaw: 19 July 1983, Dept. 5, sig. 35/86, 12, 15, MFAA.

²³ “Raport Polityczny,” Teheran: January 1978 – March 1979, Dept. 5, sig. 23/8513–5, 22, MFAA.

²⁴ “Rozwój stosunków PRL,” Warsaw: 30 March 1979, sig. LXXVI–447, 5, 13, WZ KC PZPR, CAMR; “Plan Pracy,” Warsaw: 24 January 1980, Dept. 5, sig. 25/85, 1, MFAA.

²⁵ “Plan Pracy,” Warsaw: January 1979, Dept. 5, sig. 23/23, 1, 2, MFAA.

²⁶ “Narada partyjno-zawodowa,” Teheran: 13 March 1979, sig. LXXVI–172, 2–7, WZ KC PZPR, CAMR.

²⁷ Skrzypek, “Dyplomacja polska między Wschodem a Zachodem,” 789.

²⁸ Skrzypek, “Dyplomacja polska między Wschodem a Zachodem,” 767, 789.

²⁹ President’s Daily Report File, “Carter to Brzeziński,” 8 March 1979, box 9, NLC-1–9-8–33-7, 1, JCPL.

³⁰ National Security Affairs: Carter Presidential Papers, “Brzeziński to Larabee,” 13 February 1979, box 64, 1, JCPL; “Brzeziński to Carter,” 23 November 1979, box 30, NLC-6–30-2–14-5, 3, 4, JCPL; “Turner to Carter,” box 43, NLC-25–43–3-3-1, 14, JCPL.

³¹ “Warsaw to DS,” 20 January 1978, 1–5, NARA AAD, https://aad.archives.gov/aad/createpdf?rid=16491&dt=2694&dl=2009 (accessed March 5, 2019).

³² “Warsaw to DS,” 14 February 1979, 1–2, NARA AAD, https://aad.archives.gov/aad/createpdf?rid=90822&dt=2776&dl=2169 (accessed March 7, 2019); “National Security Affairs: Carter Presidential Papers,” “Situation Room to Brzeziński,” 26 April 1979, box 1, JCPL.

³³ “Zebranie POP,” Teheran: 29 April 1981, sig. LXXVI–193, 1, WZ KC PZPR, CAMR; “Raport Polityczny,” Teheran: 18 May 1981, sig. 25/86, 1–3, MFAA.

³⁴ “Rozmowy z Desai,” Warsaw: 23 April 1979, Dept. 5, sig. 22/21, 2, MFAA; “Rozmowy z van Wellem,” Warsaw: 11 May 1979), 2, MFAA; “Rozmowy z François-Poncet,” Warsaw: 12 June 1979, 2, MFAA.

³⁵ “Łaszcz to Pierzchała,” Teheran: 3 February 1979, sig. 2/81, MFAA.

³⁶ “Notatka Stawińskiego,” Washington: 22 January 1979, Dept. 3, sig. 25/82, 1, MFAA.

³⁷ Christian Emery, US Foreign Policy and the Islamic Revolution (London: Palgrave Macmillan, 2013), 45, 77; Ganji, Politics of Confrontation, 97–100, 104–6; Javier G. Guerrero, The Carter Administration & the Fall of Iran’s Pahlavi Dynasty (New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2016), 163–5.

³⁸ “Łaszcz to Pierzchała,” Teheran: 12 January 1979, sig. 2/81, MFAA.

³⁹ “Raport Polityczny,” Teheran: 23 March 1979, Dept. 5, 4, 20, sig. 23/85, MFAA.

⁴⁰ Emery, US Foreign Policy, 41; Ganji, Politics of Confrontation, 77–8, 83, 84, 92–6; Guerrero, The Carter Administration, 114.

⁴¹ Emery, US Foreign Policy, 52, 80–2, 130; Ganji, Politics of Confrontation, 115–6.

⁴² “Notatka Stawińskiego,” Washington: 22 January 1979, Dept. 3, sig. 25/82, 2, 3, MFAA.

⁴³ “Piekarski to MFA,” Teheran: 26 August 1979, sig. 2/81, MFAA.

⁴⁴ “Notatka o Iranie,” Teheran: 23 January 1980, Dept. 5, sig. 25/85, 5–6, MFAA.

⁴⁵ “Łaszcz to Kułaga,” Teheran: 26 February 1979, sig. 2/81; “Łaszcz to Pierzchała,” Teheran: 22 March 1979, sig. 23/85, 2, MFAA.

⁴⁶ See n. 36.

⁴⁷ Ganji, Politics of Confrontation, 88.

⁴⁸ “Łaszcz to Wojtaszek,” Teheran: 27 February 1979, sig. 2/81, MFAA.

⁴⁹ John P. Diggins, Ronald Reagan (New York: W. W. Norton, 2007), 228, 233–4; Emery, US Foreign Policy, 39; Ganji, Politics of Confrontation, 1–3, 6, 54, 66, 68, 90; Prifiti, US Foreign Policy, 75–7.

⁵⁰ “Ocena sytuacji w Iranie,” Warsaw: 7 February 1979, Dept. 5, sig. 2/21, 1, MFAA; “Rozmowy Wojtaszka z MSZ Iraku,” 20–23 February 1979, sig. 24/85, MFAA; “Łaszcz to MFA,” Teheran: 13 March 1979, sig. 2/81, MFAA.

⁵¹ “Łaszcz to MFA,” Teheran: 18 June 1979, sig. 2/81, MFAA.

⁵² “Piekarski to MFA,” Teheran: 31 August 1979, sig. 2/81, MFAA.

⁵³ “Piekarski to MFA,” Teheran: 23 July 1979, sig. 2/81, MFAA.

⁵⁴ “Łaszcz to Pierzchała,” Teheran: 27 February 1979, sig. 2/81, MFAA.

⁵⁵ “Łaszcz to MFA,” Teheran: 23 May 1979, sig. 2/81, MFAA.

⁵⁶ “Łaszcz to MFA,” Teheran: 18 June 1979, sig. 2/81, MFAA.

⁵⁷ Ali M. Ansari, Confronting Iran (New York: 2007), 94–6; Ganji, Politics of Confrontation, 150–1; David P. Houghton, US Foreign Policy and the Iran Hostage Crisis (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2001), 219.

⁵⁸ Ewa Maj, “Polska wobec kryzysu w stosunkach między Stanami Zjednoczonymi a Iranem 1979–1981,” in Dzieje Najnowsze, ed. Tadeusz Wolsza (Warsaw, 2017), no. 3, 219–40.

⁵⁹ “Notatka MSZ,” Warsaw: 5 December 1979, Dept. 5, sig. 26/85, 3, MFAA; “Warsaw to DS,” 17 December 1979, NARA AAD, https://aad.archives.gov/aad/createpdf?rid=75494&dt=2776&dl=2169 (accessed March 7, 2019); “Plan Pracy,” 24 January 1980, Dept. 5, sig. 25/85, 1, MFAA; “Notatka Informacyjna,” Warsaw: 15 April 1980, sig. 26/85, MFAA; “Ocena ambasady PRL,” Teheran: 29 April 1981, sig. 25/86, 1, MFAA.

⁶⁰ “Warsaw to DS,” 23 September 1979, 2, NARA AAD, https://aad.archives.gov/aad/createpdf?rid=264469&dt=2776&dl=2169 (accessed March 5, 2019); “Warsaw to DS,” 7 December 1979, 2, NARA AAD, https://aad.archives.gov/aad/createpdf?rid=58061&dt=2776&dl=2169 (accessed March 5, 2019).

⁶¹ “Notatka MSZ,” Warsaw: 5 December 1979, Dept. 5, sig. 26/85, 1, MFAA; “Rozmowy Wojtaszka z WRD,” Warsaw: 21 May 1980, sig. 25/85, 3, MFAA.

⁶² Paczkowski, “Dyplomacja polska czasów kryzysu,” 840; “Plan Pracy,” Teheran: 24 January 1980, Dept. 5, sig. 25/85, 1, MFAA; “Notatka Informacyjna,” Warsaw: 15 April 1980, sig. 26/85, 4, MFAA; “Ocena ambasady PRL,” Teheran: 29 April 1981, sig. 25/86, 1, MFAA.

⁶³ Paczkowski, “Dyplomacja polska czasów kryzysu,” 857.

⁶⁴ “Czyrek to Spasowski,” 15 November 1979, sig. 2/81, MFAA.

⁶⁵ “Warsaw to DS,” 21 November 1979, 1–2, NARA AAD, https://aad.archives.gov/aad/createpdf?rid=264470&dt=2776&dl=2169 (accessed March 5, 2019).

⁶⁶ “Warsaw to DS,” 13 December 1979, 2, NARA AAD, https://aad.archives.gov/aad/createpdf?rid=58061&dt=2776&dl=2169 (accessed March 5, 2019).

⁶⁷ “Schaufele to DS,” Warsaw: 3 December 1979, 433–4, JCPL.

⁶⁸ “Actions to Express Displeasure to Poland,” Washington: 3 December 1979, 575–6, JCPL.

⁶⁹ “Spasowski to Wojtaszek,” 24 November 1979, sig. 2/81, MFAA.

⁷⁰ “Schaufele to DS,” Warsaw: 3 December 1979, 442–3, JCPL.

⁷¹ “Spasowski to Dobrosielski,” Washington: 12 December 1979, sig. 2/81, MFAA.

⁷² “Raport nr 7,” Washington: 17 December 1979, Dept. 3, sig. 25/82, 3, MFAA.

⁷³ “Christopher to Embassies,” Washington: 12 December 1979, 1–4, NARA AAD, https://aad.archives.gov/aad/createpdf?rid=76002&dt=2776&dl=2169 (accessed March 7, 2019); “Christopher to Schaufele,” Washington: 13 December 1979, NARA AAD, https://aad.archives.gov/aad/createpdf?rid=63795&dt=2776&dl=2169 (accessed March 5, 2019).

⁷⁴ “Warsaw to DS,” 23 November 1979, 1–2, NARA AAD, https://aad.archives.gov/aad/createpdf?rid=260358&dt=2776&dl=2169 (accessed March 5, 1979).

⁷⁵ “Filipowicz to MFA,” Teheran: 12 November 1979, sig. 2/81, MFAA; “Vance to Embassies,” 22 November 1979, 6–7, NARA AAD, https://aad.archives.gov/aad/createpdf?rid=265136&dt=2776&dl=2169 (accessed March 7, 2019); “Schaufele to DS,” 23 November 1979, 1, NARA AAD, https://aad.archives.gov/aad/createpdf?rid=260358&dt=2776&dl=2169 (accessed March 7, 2019); “U.S.-Iran situation. Polish Position,” Warsaw: 3 December 1979, 433–4, JCPL; “Iran-Hostages,” Warsaw: 15 February 1980, 612, JCPL https://aad.archives.gov/aad/createpdf?rid=265136&dt=2776&dl=2169.

⁷⁶ “Warsaw to DS,” 23 November 1979, 1–2, NARA AAD, https://aad.archives.gov/aad/createpdf?rid=260361&dt=2776&dl=2169 (accessed March 7, 2019); “Kułaga to Karwicki,” Warsaw: 15 December 1980, sig. 26/85, MFAA.

⁷⁷ “List Cartera do Gierka,” 23 May 1980, Dept. 3, sig. 47/84, 2, MFAA.

⁷⁸ “Rozmowa Gierka z Klutznickiem,” Warsaw: 26 May 1980, sig. XIA/1109, 2, CAMR.

⁷⁹ “VIII Zjazd PZPR,” Warsaw: 14 February 1980, sig. XXXIII–20, 3, 5, CAMR.

⁸⁰ “Lerner to DS,” 7 December 1979, 2, NARA AAD, https://aad.archives.gov/aad/createpdf?rid=58061&dt=2776&dl=2169 (accessed March 5, 2019).

⁸¹ Paczkowski, “Dyplomacja polska czasów kryzysu,” 822.

⁸² “Rozmowa z ambasadorem USA,” Warsaw: 22 August 1980, Dept. 3, sig. 47/84, 1, 2, MFAA.

⁸³ “Kułaga to Karwicki,” Teheran: 15 September 1980, Dept. 5, sig. 26/85, MFAA.

⁸⁴ “MFA to Filipowicz,” Warsaw: 5 September 1980, Dept. 5, sig. 26/85, MFAA.

⁸⁵ “Filipowicz to Kułaga,” Teheran: 12 September 1980, Dept. 5, sig. 26/85, MFAA.

⁸⁶ Emery, US Foreign Policy, 143–51, Ganji, Politics of Confrontation, 162–4; “Notatka MSZ,” Warsaw: 5 December 1979, Dept. 5, sig. 26/85, 1, 2; “Konflikt amerykańsko-irański,” Dept. 5, sig. 26/85, 1, MFAA; “General Records of the Department of State, Records of Warren Christopher 1977–80,” 24 May 1980, RG 59, box 11, entry 14, RC 246 1, NARA.

⁸⁷ Tyszkiewicz, Rozbijanie monolitu, 393. Only the Polish political opposition, blocked by the communist authorities, took an unequivocal, Washington-supporting position. As early as December of 1979, the Ministry of Interior noted the “occasional cases” of initiatives of solidarity with the American hostages in Warsaw and Gdańsk; “Rozpoznanie zagrożeń bezpieczeństwa wewnętrznego kraju,” December 1979, sig. 0296/229/1, INR.

⁸⁸ “Referat Egzekutywy POP,” Teheran: 29 April 1981, sig. LXXVI–193, 5, 6, WZ KC PZPR, CAMR.

⁸⁹ “Notatka: IRI,” Warsaw: 19 July 1983, Dept. 5, sig. 35/86, 13, 14, MFAA.

⁹⁰ “Czynnik ideologiczny w polityce międzynarodowej,” Warsaw: 14 December 1980, sig. LXXVI–17, 19, WZ KC PZPR, CAMR; “Stanowisko PRL,” New York: 21 October 1983, sig. 34/86, 2, MFAA; “Stanowisko ZSRR,” Moscow: 25 September 1984, sig. 55/86, 1–2.

⁹¹ “Stosunki z krajami bliskowschodnimi,” Warsaw: 19 January 1984, sig. LXXVI–17, 7; “Narada partyjno-zawodowa,” Baghdad: 20 January 1985, sig. LXXVI–239, 1, 2, WZ KC PZPR, CAMR; Teczka Orzechowskiego, “Rozmowa Majewskiego z Hazawei,” Warsaw: 7 May 1986, MFAA; “Stosunki z Iranem i Irakiem,” Warsaw: 24 September 1987, sig. 24/92, 1–2, MFAA.

⁹² “Kohorewicz to Stawiarski,” Teheran: 12 October 1987, Dept. 5, sig. 26/90, MFAA; “Rozmowa z Hazawei,” Warsaw: 22 October 1987, sig. 17/90, MFAA; “Jurasz to MFA,” Baghdad: 16 October 1988, sig. 25/92, 2, MFAA.

⁹³ “Biuletyn Informacyjny,” Warsaw: 22 April 1982, sig. XI C/39, 2, WZ KC PZPR, CAMR.

⁹⁴ “Instrukcja dla ambasadora,” Warsaw: 20 July 1983, Dept. 5, sig. 34/86, 2, MFAA.

⁹⁵ “Turbański to Żebrowski,” Warsaw: 7 October 1980, Dept. 5, sig. 26/85, MFAA.

⁹⁶ “Kohorewicz to MFA,” Teheran: 16 May 1985, Dept. 5, sig. 17/88, MFAA.

⁹⁷ “Instrukcja dla ambasadora,” Warsaw: 20 July 1983, Dept. 5, sig. 34/86, 1, 2, MFAA.

⁹⁸ “Szymczykiewicz to Stawiarski,” Warsaw: 14 December 1989. sig. 67/p, MFAA.

⁹⁹ “Notatka Informacyjna,” Warsaw: 21 June 1982, Dept. 5, sig. 24/86, 3, 4, MFAA; “Notatka Informacyjna,” Warsaw: 23 August 1982, sig. 34/86, 2, MFAA.

¹⁰⁰ “Zebranie POP,” Teheran: 11 April 1985, sig. LXXVI–239, 1–8, WZ KC PZPR, CAMR; “Kohorewicz to MFA,” Teheran: 19 April 1985, Dept. 5, sig. 17/88, MFAA; “Zebranie POP,” Teheran: 17 December 1985, sig. LXXVI–251, 2, WZ KC PZPR, CAMR; “Referat Egzekutywy POP,” Teheran: 25 March 1986, sig. LXXVI–251, 26, WZ KC PZPR, CAMR; “Raport Polityczny,” Teheran: 1985, sig. 18/88, 11–3, MFAA; “Konsultacje polsko-irańskie,” Warsaw: 29 November 1988, sig. 25/92, 1, MFAA; “Notatka MSZ,” Warsaw: 31 January 1989, sig. 3/94, 3, 5, MFAA.

¹⁰¹ “Raport Polityczny,” Warsaw: 4 May 1982, Dept. 5, sig. 26/86, 12, MFAA; “Raport Polityczny,” Teheran: May 1982 – February 1983, sig. 35/86, 17, MFAA; “Raport Polityczny,” Teheran: 1983, sig. 55/86, 13, MFAA; “Notatka Informacyjna,” Warsaw: 21 March 1985, sig. 18/88, 1–2, MFAA; “Kohorewicz to Pierzchała,” Teheran: 6 May 1985, sig. 17/88, MFAA.

¹⁰² “Plan Pracy 1986,” Dept. 5, sig. 18/88, 2, MFAA; “Kohorewicz to Pierzchała,” Teheran: 26 March 1986, sig. 64/9, MFAA; “Zebranie POP,” Teheran: 27 January 1988, sig. LXXVI–281, 1, WZ KC PZPR, CAMR; “Wystąpienie Iranu o potępienie Iraku,” Warsaw: 25 March 1988, Dept. 5, sig. 24/92, 1, MFAA; “Oświadczenie przeciwko stosowaniu broni chemicznej,” Warsaw: 13 April 2013 1988, sig. 25/92, MFAA.

¹⁰³ Teczka Orzechowskiego, “Kohorewicz to Pierzchała,” Teheran: 14 March 1986, MFAA.

¹⁰⁴ “Słowikowski to Kapuściński,” Teheran: 9 January 1984 sig. 40/86, CAMR; “Nestorowicz to Słowikowski,” Warsaw: 18 February 1984, sig. 40/86; “Strzelecki to Słowikowski,” Warsaw: 20 March 1984, MFAA.

¹⁰⁵ Romania, GDR, and Hungary were to supply Iran with weapons; Teczka Orzechowskiego, “Kohorewicz to Pierzchała,” Teheran: 17 March 1986, MFAA.

¹⁰⁶ “Szymczykiewicz to Majewski,” Teheran: 7 February 1989, sig. 67/p, MFAA; “Szymczykiewicz to Stawiarski,” Teheran: 20 March 1989, sig. 67/p, 1–2, MFAA.

¹⁰⁷ Przemysław Gasztold, Zabójcze układy (Warsaw: PWN, 2017), 202–3, 218–25, 228–9.

¹⁰⁸ “Majewski to MFA,” Teheran: 24 November 1988, Dept. 5, sig. 25/92, 2, MFAA.

¹⁰⁹ “Notatka Informacyjna,” Warsaw: 5 March 1984, Dept. 5, sig. 55/86, 1–3, MFAA.

¹¹⁰ In reality amnesty of 1984 was half-hearted. The US curtailed the openness towards Warsaw; Paczkowski, “Dyplomacja polska czasów kryzysu,” 857–8; Tyszkiewicz, Rozbijanie monolitu, 458, 520.

¹¹¹ “Sytuacja w Iraku,” Baghdad: April 1982, Dept. 5, sig. 26/86, 5, 6, MFAA; “Rozmowy z Partią Baas,” Warsaw: 1986 and 1988, sig. LXXVI–787, 3, CAMR.

¹¹² “Rozmowy Jaruzelskiego z Bushem,” Warsaw: 14 December 1987, Dept. 3, sig. 35/90, 14, MFAA.

¹¹³ Dilip Hiro, The Longest War. The Iran-Iraq Military Conflict (London: Routledge, 1990), 129–30.

¹¹⁴ “Ludwiczak to Biały,” Washington: 16 June 1987, sig. 74/p/I, MFAA.

¹¹⁵ “Kinast to Biały,” Washington: 11 July 1988, Dept. 3, sig. 43/92, 1–2, MFAA; “Majewski to MFA,” Teheran: 24 November 1988, Dept. 5, sig. 25/92, 2–4, MFAA; “Raport Polityczny,” Teheran: 12 December 1988, sig. 24/92, 1, MFAA.

¹¹⁶ “Raport nr 5,” Washington: 24 June 1980, Dept. 3, sig. 47/84, MFAA.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the National Science Centre, Poland, followed by the grant number [2016/21/N/HS3/00904].

Notes on contributors

Ewa Maj

Dr Ewa Maj – has a Ph.D. in History, specialization – Contemporary History, from the Institute of History, University of Wrocław, Poland; Americanist; scholarship holder of the Roosevelt Study Center in Middelburg, John F. Kennedy Institute for North American Studies - Freie Universität Berlin, intern of the Liverpool Hope University, and a scholarship holder of the National Science Centre, Poland. Her research has covered ‘U.S.-Iranian relations’ from the Polish authorities’ perspective as well as ‘Polish-Iranian relations’ in the Cold War period. Currently Senior Specialist in the Research Department of the ‘Remembrance and Future’ Centre in Wrocław.