President Lech Kaczynski, Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski and Defence Minister Bogdan Klich have left for the two-day NATO summit in France and Germany.

Afghanistan will dominate the summit. Poland is one of the member states which has committed troops - some 1600 with more ready to go - for what was meant to be a multinational mission there. President Barack Obama has made Afghanistan the centre piece of his foreign policy, opposing US’s involvement in Iraq by saying that it was “the wrong war” and the situation in Afghanistan was the real threat to its national security.

But most European states are not convinced that what happens in Kabul has much to do with their direct interests.

While the UK, like Poland, is involved in a military capacity, much of the European member states want to limit themselves to civilian and humanitarian projects, and President Obama - currently on his first trip to Europe - has had to scale down his expectations.

The  NATO summit is also to discuss candidates for the post of the organization’s Secretary General. The term of office of the current NATO head Jaap de Hoop Scheffer ends this July. Among the possible successors are PM of Denmark Anders Fogh Rasmussen - currelty the favourite to get the job - and Canadian defence minister Peter MacKay. Another candidate is the Polish FM Sikorski, but his chances are described as slim due to opposition from Germany and France, who are anxious to produce a candidate that Moscow would feel comfortable with.

The summit is to start with a concert and a working dinner for the heads of states and governments in Baden-Baden. The evening session will be devoted to the future of NATO and its relations with Russia.

On Saturday morning the summit will be officially welcomed by German Chancellor Angela Merkel. Later on there will be a celebration in honour of the soldiers serving in NATO missions. (pg/jm)