Continuing to serve the public after a long life of accomplishments in public service, Victor Ashe, former ambassador to Poland, returned to the Howard H. Baker Jr. Center for Public Policy. Ashe spoke about "Eastern Europe's Role in the 21st Century" as part of the Ambassadorial Lecture Series Tuesday night.

Poland stands as an island of faith. Victor Ashe, former ambassador to PolandAshe spoke on his experience with the Central European Republic of Poland, focusing on the origin of Polish/American relations dating back to the Revolutionary War. Poland allied with America in both World Wars, during the Russian-Communist hold and into the fall of the Berlin Wall and the break of Communism.

According to Ashe, Poland is very important to the U.S. because of its pivotal location in the heart of Europe.  It is a trend-setter for all of the former Soviet-occupied territories, he said. 

Over the past few years, Poland has experienced a "great economic bonanza," Ashe said.  The Polish value the same concepts of democracy and are heavily involved in their faith. 

"Poland stands as an island of faith," said Ashe. 

More than 30 percent of the Polish population is sitting in church on Sunday. This is vital to understanding the nation and region because of the many misinterpretations associated with the previously vulnerable country.

The former ambassador also touched on ways to improve the relations with countries, such as Poland, by stating that there is no need to spend large amounts of money on high-tech secure embassies that are in a country with a low security risk. By forcing large embassies to be built, the population is moved out of the city and away from the common majority. This can send a bad message to the home country. 

Ashe strongly believes that the U.S. has an "excellent foreign service," and Poland can offer an everlasting alliance and a vital opinion from a region long overlooked.