Mariusz Handzlik
Encyclopedia
Mariusz Handzlik was a Polish diplomat, the Undersecretary of State in the Office of the President of the Republic of Poland and since October, 2008 in charge of foreign policy.
Born on June 11, 1965 in Bielsko Biała; MA in sociology of international relations, School of Social Sciences, the Catholic University of Lublin, Poland. Prime Minister’s advisor on foreign policy (1992-1994); first secretary and counselor for political and military affairs at the Embassy of the Republic of Poland in Washington, DC (1994-2000); director of Export Policy Department (2000-2001), deputy director of Security Policy Department at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (2001-2002); ambassador at large and chairman of the Missile Technology Control Regime /MTCR/, Paris (2002-2003); minister counselor for political affairs at the Mission of Poland to the United Nations in New York (2004- 2005 ); Head of the Office of Foreign Affairs in the Presidential Chancellery (2006-2008).
Postgraduate education at the School of Social Sciences at the University of Vienna, Austria; the University of Geneva, Switzerland; the University of Cranfield, United Kingdom and the Center of International Trade and Security at the University of Georgia, United States.
Traineeship in the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives and the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee of the US Congress; the United Nations Research Institute for Social Development (UNRISD) and the Permanent Delegation of the Republic of Poland to NATO
In 2000 awarded “the Medal for Outstanding Public Service” by the Secretary of Defense of the United States Department of Defense.
Father of three children: daughters - Julia and Iwona, son - Jan
He was listed on the flight manifest of the Tupolev Tu-154
of the 36th Special Aviation Regiment
carrying the President of Poland Lech Kaczyński
which crashed near Smolensk-North airport near Pechersk near Smolensk
, Russia
, on 10 April 2010, killing all aboard.
Handzlik befriended Polish war hero and Righteous Gentile
Jan Karski
in the latter's final years. The two men were playing chess on July 13, 2000, when Karski fell ill. Alarmed, Handzlik started to call an ambulance. Karski sternly responded: “Minister Handzlik, Check! Your move.” Karski perished soon after reaching the hospital. A statue of Karski playing chess now sits outside the Polish Consulate in New York City, with a copy installed on the Georgetown campus.
, a private Polish university in Warsaw. At the time of his death, he was teaching two courses at the school entitled "U.S. Foreign and Security Policy" and "Negotiations and Responsibility to Protect".
Born on June 11, 1965 in Bielsko Biała; MA in sociology of international relations, School of Social Sciences, the Catholic University of Lublin, Poland. Prime Minister’s advisor on foreign policy (1992-1994); first secretary and counselor for political and military affairs at the Embassy of the Republic of Poland in Washington, DC (1994-2000); director of Export Policy Department (2000-2001), deputy director of Security Policy Department at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (2001-2002); ambassador at large and chairman of the Missile Technology Control Regime /MTCR/, Paris (2002-2003); minister counselor for political affairs at the Mission of Poland to the United Nations in New York (2004- 2005 ); Head of the Office of Foreign Affairs in the Presidential Chancellery (2006-2008).
Postgraduate education at the School of Social Sciences at the University of Vienna, Austria; the University of Geneva, Switzerland; the University of Cranfield, United Kingdom and the Center of International Trade and Security at the University of Georgia, United States.
Traineeship in the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives and the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee of the US Congress; the United Nations Research Institute for Social Development (UNRISD) and the Permanent Delegation of the Republic of Poland to NATO
In 2000 awarded “the Medal for Outstanding Public Service” by the Secretary of Defense of the United States Department of Defense.
Father of three children: daughters - Julia and Iwona, son - Jan
He was listed on the flight manifest of the Tupolev Tu-154
2010 Polish Air Force Tu-154 crash
The 2010 Polish Air Force Tu-154 crash occurred on 10 April 2010, when a Tupolev Tu-154M aircraft of the Polish Air Force crashed near the city of Smolensk, Russia, killing all 96 people on board...
of the 36th Special Aviation Regiment
36th Special Aviation Regiment
The 36 Specjalny Pułk Lotnictwa Transportowego 36 SPLT is a special aviation regiment of the Siły Powietrzne Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej, established in 1945. All of its aircraft are for national public use, the most important being transport of Polish politicians and MON highest officials &...
carrying the President of Poland Lech Kaczyński
Lech Kaczynski
Lech Aleksander Kaczyński was Polish lawyer and politician who served as the President of Poland from 2005 until 2010 and as Mayor of Warsaw from 2002 until 22 December 2005. Before he became a president, he was also a member of the party Prawo i Sprawiedliwość...
which crashed near Smolensk-North airport near Pechersk near Smolensk
Smolensk
Smolensk is a city and the administrative center of Smolensk Oblast, Russia, located on the Dnieper River. Situated west-southwest of Moscow, this walled city was destroyed several times throughout its long history since it was on the invasion routes of both Napoleon and Hitler. Today, Smolensk...
, Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
, on 10 April 2010, killing all aboard.
Handzlik befriended Polish war hero and Righteous Gentile
Righteous gentile
Righteous gentile may refer to:* Ger toshav, "stranger-foreigner", Aramaic and Hebrew term for a resident alien in a Jewish state.* Righteous among the Nations, an honorific bestowed by the State of Israel to non-Jews who risked their lives to save Jews from the Nazis...
Jan Karski
Jan Karski
Jan Karski was a Polish World War II resistance movement fighter and later scholar at Georgetown University. In 1942 and 1943 Karski reported to the Polish government in exile and the Western Allies on the situation in German-occupied Poland, especially the destruction of the Warsaw Ghetto, and...
in the latter's final years. The two men were playing chess on July 13, 2000, when Karski fell ill. Alarmed, Handzlik started to call an ambulance. Karski sternly responded: “Minister Handzlik, Check! Your move.” Karski perished soon after reaching the hospital. A statue of Karski playing chess now sits outside the Polish Consulate in New York City, with a copy installed on the Georgetown campus.
Career
Handzlik also served as a lecturer at Collegium CivitasCollegium Civitas
Collegium Civitas is a university located in Warsaw, the capital of Poland. It was established under the auspices of five Institutes of the Polish Academy of Sciences in 1997 and has relied extensively upon the teaching and research traditions of these renowned institutions...
, a private Polish university in Warsaw. At the time of his death, he was teaching two courses at the school entitled "U.S. Foreign and Security Policy" and "Negotiations and Responsibility to Protect".
Honours and awards
- Commander's Cross of the Order of Polonia Restituta - 2010, posthumously
- Secretary of Defense Medal for Outstanding Public ServiceSecretary of Defense Medal for Outstanding Public ServiceThe Secretary of Defense Medal for Outstanding Public Service is the second highest award presented by the Secretary of Defense to non-career Federal employees, private citizens, and foreign nationals for contributions, assistance, or support to Department of Defense functions that are extensive...
- 2000, United States - Grand Officer of the Order of Merit - 2008, Portugal
- National Order of Merit, Class III - 2009, Malta
- Commander's Cross of the Order of Merit - 2009, Hungary
- Commander's Cross of the Order of Merit (Lithuania) - 2009, Lithuania