Russia's key role in German-Polish relations

In the run-up to German Chancellor Angela Merkel's two-day visit to Poland, the newspaper's Berlin correspondent, Piotr Cywinski, says the way Merkel deals with Russia will be the acid test for German-Polish relations. "Merkel insists on keeping up her painstaking balancing act. On the one hand she defends Germany's interests, because the pipeline is a lucrative deal. On the other, she doesn't regard Putin as a 'perfect democrat' and can see what direction things are taking in Russia. Before the elections in 2005 the chancellor announced the snuggling up with Russia would be replaced by objective dialogue and that Poland's interests would be taken into account. Now she has the chance to prove this. The way the energy supply problem is dealt with and Germany's stance in the disputes with Russia, which is constantly trying to play the partners of the Union off against each other, will determine whether there can be a genuine partnership between Germany and Poland."

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