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Iran–Poland relations are historical and bilateral relationship between theIslamic Republic of Iran and theRepublic of Poland. Both nations are members of theUnited Nations.
As early as the 16th century, Iranian merchants and trading caravans entered intoEurope, made contact and exchanged goods with Polish merchants,[1] with merchants from Iran noted in major Polish cities such asToruń andLwów.[2][3]Isfahan rugs imported fromPersia to thePolish–Lithuanian Commonwealth were incorrectly known as "Polish rugs" (French:Polonaise) in Western Europe.[4] In the following centuries Iran (known to the Europeans as Persia at the time) and Poland enjoyed friendly relations. The first documented visit of a Polish envoy to Iran took place in 1602,[5] and aPersian embassy reachedKraków, Poland between 1609 and 1615.
In the 16th and 17th centuries, someArmenians migrated from Iran to Poland, includingZamość and Lwów.[6] Poland's victory over the invadingOttoman Empire at theBattle of Vienna in 1683 was celebrated inSafavid Iran.[7] After the victory, Polish KingJohn III Sobieski was granted the proud titleEl Ghazi by the Persians,[8] and ShahSuleiman of Persia even contemplated a move to recoverBaghdad, previously lost to the Ottoman Empire, however, he eventually abandoned the plan.[7] For much of the 17th century, the ideology ofSarmatism was popular among the Polish nobility. At its core was the unifying belief that the people of Poland were descended from the ancientIranianSarmatians, the legendary invaders of contemporary Polish lands in antiquity.[9][10]
Tadeusz Krusiński, a Polish Jesuit active in Iran, was the author ofRelatio de mutationibus Regni Persarum, the first work on Persian history in Europe, written in the 1720s, and translated into several languages.[11] In 1795, Iran was one of two countries (the other being theOttoman Empire) to not recognize thePartition of Poland by theAustrian Empire,Prussia and theRussian Empire.[12] After the partitions and following unsuccessful Polish uprisings, many Polish refugees fled to Iran. Among notablePoles living in19th-century Iran were poetAleksander Chodźko, Ignacy Pietraszewski, who translated theZoroastrianAvesta into Polish,[5] andIzydor Borowski, former participant of the PolishKościuszko Uprising and member of thePolish Legions, who was instrumental in modernizing the Iranian army, and eventually became a general in Iran.[13] Polish geologistKarol Bohdanowicz pioneered the geological survey of Iran's Khorasan Mountains.[5]
In 1918, after the end ofWorld War I, Poland regained its independence. In 1919, Iran recognized Polish independence and both states established diplomatic relations.[14] In 1927, both nations signed a Friendship Treaty and in 1928, Poland opened a consulate inTabriz.[14]
In September 1939, Poland wasinvaded byGermany and theSoviet Union, which sparked the beginning ofWorld War II. In 1942, approximately 120,000 Polish refugees arrived toIran.[15] The refugees were part of a larger exodus of between 320,000 and a millionPolish evacuees who were forced out of Poland by theSoviet Union during the war and deported to the eastern parts of the Soviet Union incl.Siberia. With the assistance ofAnders' Army, approximately 120,000 Polish evacuees left the Soviet Union toIran where they awaited to emigrate toPalestine,Australia,New Zealand,South Africa,United Kingdom,United States and elsewhere.[16] It was the largest migration of Europeans through Iran.[5] Perhaps, the most famous historical figure among these migrants wasMenachem Begin,[17] who later became Prime Minister ofIsrael.
InTehran, the refugees were accommodated in four camps; including one of the private gardens of Iran'sShah; was transformed into a temporary refugee camp, and a special hospital was dedicated to them. After the war, a few even decided to stay in Iran permanently, marrying Iranian spouses and starting families.[15] Due to hunger and epidemics they suffered while held in Soviet Union, over 2,800 Polish refugees died in Iran, and there are several Polish cemeteries located in various cities of Iran (Tehran,Bandar-e Anzali,Mashhad,Isfahan,Ahvaz).[5]
After World War II, Iran and Poland re-established diplomatic relations in August 1945. Their relations were elevated to embassies in 1962.[14]
In September 1966, ShahMohammad Reza Pahlavi paid an official visit to Poland.[14] In May 1968, Chairman of thePolish Council of State,Marian Spychalski paid an official visit to Tehran. In 1979, Iran became an Islamic Republic after theIranian Revolution. Relations between Iran and Poland continued uninterrupted ever since and several high-level visits have taken place between leaders of both nations.
Polish rescue workers and medics took part in the relief operation after the2003 Bam earthquake, and humanitarian aid was sent from Poland to Iran.[18]
However, in 2019, Poland hosted theFebruary Warsaw Conference inWarsaw, a conference which was believed to be anti-Iranian. This prompted an angry reaction from the Government of Iran, and its state-run media ran a post condemning the Polish government as "fools in Warsaw".[19] Subsequently, Iran cancelled a Polish film festival which was about to occur inTehran.[19]
In October 2021, Poland donated one millionCOVID-19 vaccines to Iran, with the PolishMinistry of Foreign Affairs stressing the centuries-old good relations between the two nations and also to defuse tensions over Poland hosting an anti-Iranian conference two years earlier.[20]
High-level visits from Iran to Poland[14]
High-level visits from Poland to Iran[14]
Both nations have signed several bilateral agreements such as a Friendship Treaty (1927); Agreement on Trade (1952); Agreement on Road Transportation (1976); Agreement of Mutual Support and Protection of Investment (1998); Agreement on the Avoidance of Double Taxation (1998); Agreement on Air Transportation (1999) and an Agreement on Cooperation in the Field of Environmental Protection (2002).[1]
In 2017, trade between Iran and Poland totaled US$230 million.[21] Iran's main exports to Poland include: Crude oil and oil products, petrochemicals, fruit, dried fruits (mainly pistachios and dried grapes) dates, plastics and plastic products, iron and steel, rugs and fitted carpets. Poland's main exports to Iran include: Agricultural machinery, food products, medical equipment and instruments, glass and home appliances.[1][21]
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