Walesa appeals to EU leaders to save Gdansk shipyard, cradle of Poland’s Solidarity

September 17th, 2009 PRAGUE - Expectations that the US is to scrap a planned missile defence system in eastern Europe grew Thursday, with the Czech prime minister saying that US President Barack Obama told him Washington was pulling out of the project. "Today shortly after midnight, American President Barack Obama contacted me by telephone to inform me that his government is pulling out from the plan to build a radar for the anti-missile defence system on the territory of the Czech Republic," Jan Fischer told journalists in Prague.

September 1st, 2009 WARSAW - Commemorations have begun in Poland to mark the 70th anniversary of the outbreak of the Second World War. The first ceremony took place at dawn on Westerplatte peninsula near Gdansk, where a German battleship fired the first shots on a Polish fort in 1939.

August 5th, 2009 KALININGRAD - Russia's Yantar shipyard is negotiating a $60 million loan to enable it to complete the construction of three frigates for the Indian Navy, shipyard's director Igor Orlov said Wednesday. Russia is building three Project 11356 Krivak IV class guided missile frigates for the Indian Navy under a $1.6 billion contract signed in July, 2006.

August 1st, 2009 SF eyes UN Climate Center at polluted shipyardSAN FRANCISCO — Mayor Gavin Newsom and the United Nations are eyeing a former naval shipyard contaminated by radiation, heavy metals and other industrial toxins as the future site of a sprawling new green technology complex and climate change think tank. The proposal would turn a section of the Hunters Point Shipyard, one of the most polluted places in the nation according to the U.S.

July 27th, 2009 KHABAROVSK - The first stage of sea trials of Russia's Nerpa nuclear attack submarine, which was damaged in a fatal accident during previous tests, has been successfully completed, the Amur shipyard said Monday. The vessel, which will be leased to the Indian Navy by the end of 2009, resumed sea trials July 10 in the Sea of Japan following extensive repairs.

July 22nd, 2009 Polish shipyard wins EU approval for euro251M aidBRUSSELS — Poland's Gdansk shipyard must slash capacity in return for EU approval to keep euro251 million ($357 million) in government subsidies, the European Commission said Wednesday. The yard, the birthplace of the anti-communist movement, was threatened with closure during a four-year EU investigation into whether government capital injections, tax write-offs, loans and guarantees should be repaid because they might be illegal and damaging to competition.

July 18th, 2009 MUMBAI - The US is ready for new and even more promising relations with India, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Saturday. Speaking to journalists at the start of a five-day trip to India, Clinton said the Barack Obama administration was determined to cement bilateral ties further.

July 17th, 2009 Poland's leaders back appeal to Obama over RussiaWARSAW, Poland — Poland's prime minister and president say they back an appeal by former Eastern European leaders to President Barack Obama urging him not to overlook them as he pursues better ties with Russia. Thursday's appeal came in a letter signed by a group of 22 prominent leaders including former presidents Lech Walesa of Poland and Vaclav Havel of the Czech Republic.

June 14th, 2009 Netanyahu appeals to Arab leaders for peaceJERUSALEM — Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu on Sunday called on Palestinian leaders to restart peace negotiations without preconditions. Netanyahu made the call during a major policy speech about his Mideast peacemaking intentions.

June 4th, 2009 Poland celebrates 20 years since historic voteGDANSK, Poland — European leaders on Thursday hailed Poland's first semi-free vote as an inspiration for movements that brought down regimes across the Soviet bloc, saying on the election's 20th anniversary that it helped pave the way for a reunited Europe. At events in Gdansk, the birthplace of Solidarity, and Krakow, the historic seat of Polish kings, two men above others were hailed for their historic role in bringing down communism: Lech Walesa, the former Polish electrician, and Vaclav Havel, the Czech playwright.

June 4th, 2009 ISLAMABAD - The Pakistani Navy's combat capabilities will be greatly enhanced with the induction later this year of two Chinese-built state-of-the art frigates later this year. The construction of the first two ships has already been completed and they will be delivered to Pakistan Navy in August and December this year after successful completion of ongoing trials, a navy statement Thursday said.

June 3rd, 2009 Poland remembers its bloodless revolution of 1989WARSAW, Poland — It began in Poland at the ballot box: A season of revolutions that toppled communist regimes from Berlin to Bucharest was set in motion 20 years ago this week by the first semi-free elections ever to take place in the Soviet-dominated eastern bloc. On Thursday, Poles celebrate the anniversary of the ballot, which delivered a sweeping victory to Lech Walesa's pro-democracy Solidarity movement, kicking off a stream of events that will culminate with celebrations of the fall of the Berlin Wall this November and the Dec.

May 30th, 2009 Campus building in Ill. named after Lech WalesaCHICAGO — A campus building in Chicago now bears the name of the Nobel Peace Prize laureate whose Solidarity movement in the '80s helped trigger communism's collapse.

May 9th, 2009 Poland's jobless rate down to 11 percent in AprilWARSAW, Poland — Poland's jobless rate dropped to 11 percent in April from 11.2 percent the month before, according to government statistics released Friday. Labor Minister Jolanta Fedak said some 1.72 million people in the country of 38 million were without a job at the end of April — 28,000 less than the previous month.

March 26th, 2009 BERLIN/WARSAW/BUDAPEST/PRAGUE - When the world marks the 20th anniversary of the fall of Communism this year, attention will focus on the Berlin Wall, a potent symbol of that system. But while the focus is there - events include a plan to topple giant domino stones to dramatise the fall of various Communist regimes - some people who lived under Communist rule say the seeds for change were sown elsewhere.