Paris and Warsaw must move on from splits over the war in Iraq and learn to work together in the expanded European Union, focusing on their common interests, French President Jacques Chirac said in an interview on Monday.
But Poland must also avoid policies that might hurt ties with Russia, as good relations with Moscow were vital, the Gazeta Wyborcza newspaper quoted him as saying ahead of Monday's summit with Polish President Aleksander Kwasniewski.
"If it happens that our positions are not always the same, and that happens between countries with a strong identity, we should be constantly looking to cooperate in a climate of full and complete confidence," he told the paper.
The two leaders will meet in the northern French town of Arras.
Chirac has in the past criticized Poland and other east European states for siding with the United States over the war in Iraq, saying they "missed a good opportunity to shut up." The two countries have also clashed over voting rights in the newly expanded EU.
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