Ukraine, Polish Relations Focus of Senator Murphy’s Meeting With “Little Poland” Audience

Murphy Briefs Constituents After Trip To Warsaw Security Conference At City’s Pulaski Club

by John McNamara

NEW BRITAIN – U.S. Senator Chris Murphy (D-CT) returned to familiar turf on Monday, October 10th, at a town meeting style forum with 75 constituents held at the PD Club (formerly the Pulaski Democratic Club) in the heart of “Little Poland.”

Fresh off his third legislative trip to Poland where he attended a security forum in Warsaw last week, Murphy assessed the war in Ukraine and the U.S. and Poland’s support for defending Ukraine against Russia’s invasion that started last February.

Murphy, a member of the Foreign Relations Committee and Co-Chair of the Poland Caucus in the Congress, fielded a range of questions on the U.S response to the Ukrainian crisis during the more than hour and a half town hall held in the lounge of the Pulaski Club that was transformed into the PD Club, a social and events venue on Grove Street in 2020.

“The latest invasion is really about us,” said Murphy about the scorched-earth Russian aggression that Ukrainian forces have repelled in recent weeks amid heavy civilian losses. “It makes sense for us right now to support the Ukrainians in their effort to defend their territory, not just because it is the right thing to do for Ukraine but also for the world.”

Murphy, who met with Polish leaders in Warsaw on security issues, praised Poland, a country contiguous with the Ukrainian border, for helping Ukraine in unison with the U.S. military aid and for sheltering millions of war refugees since last winter’s invasion. During his Warsaw visit, however, Murphy expressed deep concerns about the rule of law and freedom of the press in Poland. The government led by Andrzes Duda has imposed what Murphy referred to a “quiet repression” by interfering with the judiciary and squelching the media. Murphy met with independent journalists and representatives of civil society in confirming that the U.S. has a problem with Duda’s actions.

Strategically, Murphy said “this is a critical moment for the U.S. to stand up for the post World War II order.” He said preserving Ukraine’s sovereignty and borders are critical to stopping Vladimir Putin’s moves to dominate Eastern Europe. “If Russia is able to invade and make Ukraine part of a new Russian empire then China will see that there is an ability to do the same” against Taiwan and other neighboring countries.

Providing Ukraine with offensive or long range weapons risks a direct U.S.-Russia conflict, according to Murphy, responding to several questioners who favored a harder line against Russia, including a New Britain resident who said he is housing seven refugees. “It doesn’t make sense to support a Ukraine attack on Russia,” stated Murphy, saying the current response and stepped up sanctions are holding Russia at bay. He said the threat to use tactical nuclear weapons by Putin “is possible but not imminent” as Ukraine’s successes on the battlefield increase.

Murphy also pushed back on calls for a cease fire or more diplomacy right now because of Putin’s moves to annex parts of Ukraine in contested territory. Noting that he has “probably opposed more military interventions (referring to Iraq and Yemen) than most others. There are some conflicts that are worth it and this is one of them.” Murphy warned that “if Putin is able to annex territory he will attack NATO. There will be a time for diplomacy.”

Murphy dismissed as “Russian propaganda” claims that the self determination of Russian speakers in the Ukrainian state of Dombas is being denied, saying the vote for Ukraine’s independence was overwhelming there in 1991. The Committee to End the War in Ukraine has called for an immediate cease fire, condemning all sides for the conflict and citing Ukraine’s and NATO allies’ failure to live up to the Minsk Accords of 2014 and 2015.

The “Little Poland” venue for Murphy’s latest constituent meeting springs from the Senator’s personal and political roots. Murphy’s Polish American mother grew up in the city’s Mount Pleasant housing project, a connection he often shared in heavily Polish New Britain in his runs for Congress and the Senate. New Britain is also home to many residents of Ukrainian ancestry and two churches, St. Josephat’s Ukrainian Catholic Church and St. Mary’s Ukrainian Orthodox Church that serve the Ukrainian American community and have welcomed a stream of war refugees into the city since the Russian invasion.

Hosting the meeting were Attorney Adrian Baron, President of the Polonia Business Association and a founding organizer of the annual Little Poland Festival, Kasia and PD Club President Walter Nowak and Dr. Lisa Wisniewski. Attendees included Democratic Registrar of Voters Lucian Pawlak and State Rep. Peter Tercyak (D-26) who introduced Murphy.