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President Kaczynski's Plane Crash Spurs Interest in May 5th Katyn Conference at Library of Congress & Exhibit at Russell Senate Office Building
April 30, 2010
On May 5, experts on the Katyn Forest Massacre from Poland, Russia and the United States will be joined by members of Congress to discuss new details about this unearthed chapter of history, and to explore the future of Polish-Russian relations.
Speakers to include: Senators Benjamin Cardin, Richard Lugar, Barbara Mikulski,
Former National Security Advisor, Dr. Zbigniew Brzezinski,
House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, Rep. Marcy Kaptur,
Polish Ambassador Robert Kupiecki, Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak
New Details About The Katyn Massacre To Be Discussed
WASHINGTON, DC: The plane crash that killed Polish President Lech Kaczynski and his delegation in Smolensk, Russia, thrust the story of Katyn onto the front pages of newspapers around the world, spurring interest in this massacre that had been covered up for decades. On April 28th, for the first time, Russia made documents about the massacre available on its web site.
On May 5, experts on the Katyn Forest Massacre from Poland, Russia and the United States will be joined by members of Congress to discuss new details about this unearthed chapter of history, and to explore the future of Polish-Russian relations.
Morning and afternoon panel discussions will be held in the Coolidge Auditorium at the Jefferson Building of the Library of Congress, and an exhibit of photos and archival material about the Katyn Massacre will be shown in the Rotunda of the Russell Senate Office Building and the Whittall Pavilion in the Library of Congress.
Nearly 22,000 officers captured by the Soviets were murdered, and Stalin deported more than one million Poles to Siberia where many died from starvation and forced labor. The litany of horrors Stalin visited on the Poles fused into the one word - Katyn.
Conference Program:
The 70th Anniversary Observance of The Katyń Massacre
Coolidge Auditorium, Library of Congress, Thomas Jefferson Building
1st Street, SE, Between Independence Ave & East Capitol Street
May 5, 2010
Sponsor: The Kosciuszko Foundation: The American Center for Polish Culture
In Cooperation With: The U.S. Helsinki Commission, The Foundation for Polish Science, The Cold War Studies Program at Harvard University, The Memorial Human Rights Protection Center in Moscow, The Polish Embassy in Washington D.C., The Council to Preserve the Memory of Combat and Martyrdom
8:30 a.m. Registration
9:00 a.m. Introduction of guests by Alex Storozynski, President & Executive
Director, The Kosciuszko Foundation, host and conference moderator
Welcome by Dr. James Billington, Librarian of Congress
Senator Barbara Mikulski
Ambassador Robert Kupiecki, Republic of Poland
10:00 a.m. Address by Sen. Benjamin Cardin, Chairman, U.S. Helsinki Commission
10:15 a.m. Panel Presentation and Discussion
The Katyń Forest Massacre: Its Importance and Consequences
Moderator: Ambassador Thomas Simons,
the Davis Center, Harvard University
Prof. Natalia Lebedeva, co-editor,
Katyn: A Crime Without Punishment
Alexander Guryanov, Memorial human rights organization, Moscow
Dr. Mark Kramer, Cold War Studies Program, Harvard University
Dr. Michael Szporer, University of Maryland/UC,
and Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation
11: 30 a.m. Remarks and Introduction House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer
11: 45 a.m. Address by Dr. Zbigniew Brzezinski,Center for Strategic
and International Studies and former National Security Advisor
12:30 p.m. Break for Lunch
Rotunda of the Russell Senate Office Building, Opening
of the Exhibit by The Council to Protect the Memory of Combat
and Martyrdom, "Katyn Forest, Massacre. Politics. Morality."
2:30 p.m. Welcome to Afternoon Session, Alex Storozynski
Senator Richard Lugar, Ranking Minority Member,
Foreign Relations Committee
Senator Leon Kieres, Chair of the Commission of Foreign Affairs
Senate of the Republic of Poland
*(Awaiting confirmation) Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak
Daniel Fried, Former U.S. Ambassador to Poland (1997-2000)
3:30 p.m. Panel: Katyn, The Potential Benefits of Reconciliation
Moderator: Rep. Marcy Kaptur,
Member of the House Appropriations Committee
Victor Ashe, U.S. Ambassador to Poland, 2004-2009
Prof. Anna Cienciala, co-editor, Katyn: A Crime Without Punishment
Allen Paul, author, Katyn: Stalin's Massacre and the Triumph of Truth
Dr. Ruth Wedgwood, Johns Hopkins School of International Studies
Thomas Patrick Melady, U.S. Ambassador to Holy See 1989-1993
5:00 p.m. Conference concludes
5:30 p.m. Congressional Reception:Library of Congress, Montpelier Room
Guests to include members of Congress, the diplomatic corps, the
Washington Public policy community, members of the media and
representatives of the Russian and Polish American Communities.
For further information contact:
Alex Storozynski
The Kosciuszko Foundation, The American Center of Polish Culture
15 East 65th Street
New York, NY 10065
212-734-2130
alex@thekf.org
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