Czech politicians welcome Polish visa-waiver accomplishments

Czech politicians have welcomed the news that Polish citizens will be able to travel to the United States without a visa during an initial two-year trial period. Both Prime Minister Jiri Paroubek and Foreign Minister Cyril Svoboda see the decision of the American Senate as a positive signal for the Czech Republic too. The current American stipulations for visa-waiver status require a larger military presence in Iraq or in Afghanistan than the Czech Republic currently has, but there are no plans to increase these numbers in order to fulfil the U.S. quota. Jiri Paroubek says that if the Social Democrats win the upcoming elections and he becomes the next Czech prime minister, he will continue to support efforts aimed at achieving visa-waiver status for the Czech Republic. In order to become law, the U.S. Senate proposal must still be approved by Congress and signed by the President.