WARSAW (Xinhua) -- Polish President Lech Kaczynski and his visiting French counterpart Nicolas Sarkozy signed a declaration on Polish-French strategic partnership.

In the declaration Poland and France pledged to maintain close political, economic social and cultural cooperation in bilateral relations within EU and NATO.
During a meeting at the Presidential Palace, Sarkozy emphasized his visit was a good opportunity for signing the strategic partnership for Poland and France ""have a lot of common interests including the common agricultural policy.""
Sarkozy thanked the Polish president for his support for the forthcoming French presidency of the EU. France is taking over the EU rotating presidency on July 1.
Sarkozy also thanked Kaczynski for a ""compromise"" on the Lisbon Treaty. The Polish president stressed that in Brussels' negotiations on the treaty Sarkozy played a ""key role"" for he ""broke ice that seemed to be unbreakable.""
Kaczynski said Sarkozy's visit will be of importance to Polish-French relations, NATO and the EU. He stressed that Poland was very glad that France decided to return to the alliance's military structures.
During a meeting with Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk later in the day, Sarkozy declared France wanted to work ""side by side"" with Poland during its entire presidency of the EU.
At a joint press conference with Tusk, Sarkozy stressed he discussed with the Polish Prime Minister NATO, the Polish initiative on the EU eastern policy and the defense of the common agricultural policy.
The French president also said France decided to lift on July 1 barriers for Poles in access to its labor market for ""it believed in the free flow of workers in Europe.""