Organizational preparations to the Polish Presidency are in progress at full steam. We began accomplishment of some tasks in 2007 starting from the analysis of experiences of other countries. In 2008, the Government Plenipotentiary for the Polish Presidency in the EU was appointed and in January 2009 the Polish government passed a comprehensive program of preparations to this historical event. Moreover in 2009 the financial resources for organization were provided, logistic preparations as well as trainings for Polish officials and first promo and information activities were undertaken. On July 1, 2011 Poland will assume the Presidency of the EU Council. It is not only a great challenge requiring strategic planning, full political and organizational activity on domestic and European level but also, what the representatives of the current government emphasize, a big opportunity for Poland in shaping the EU. According to them, the Presidency gives a possibility of a bigger and real influence on decisions taken in the EU. To the public opinion, they send messages that we will have an opportunity to present in the EU arena the priorities of Polish policy, emphasize the most important area, submit our own ideas and initiatives. Only few emphasize the fact that the Presidency is mainly the continuation of previous activities of the EU, providing its coherent functioning and guaranteeing the vote in the worldwide important matters.

The goal of the article it to present the role and meaning of the Western Balkans for the Polish foreign policy on the eve of the Polish Presidency in the EU. It is worth wondering if the fact of running the Presidency causes the change of character of the Polish foreign policy toward the region. The final answer will be possible after its end but some divagations are possible today, after the analysis of initial aims of the Polish Presidency. A question, if there is a necessity of enhancing the Polish activity and Polish presence in this part of Europe, is also legitimate. Experiences of the last years show that the interest of the Polish diplomacy in the region of the Western Balkans was limited and even if we showed some activity, it was the support for realization of the strategic aims of the foreign policy. The turning point in the Polish policy towards the Western Balkans could be a membership in the EU. Then there appeared a possibility of widening the field of influence of the Polish policy on the Balkans with the use of not only the own resources and political instruments but also the instruments at the EU disposal. It is worth considering whether it is not worth to use the moment to dynamize the Polish actions towards the region, especially when the region is very important for the EU and when the EU functions also as a promoter of stabilization, transformation and permanent development of the Western Balkans.