Poland has begun a major infrastructure upgrade ahead of its co-hosting of the UEFA European Football Championship in 2012. Pictured above is a digital rendering of a refurbished Warsaw National Stadium.

"During World War II, the Japanese government was sending visas to Polish Jews to help them escape," recalls Japanese Ambassador to Poland Ryuichi Tanabe.

And over the years, the Polish have also admired the culture and tradition of the Japanese.

"Even Lech Walesa, our first president, wanted to make Gdansk into a little Japan," says Pawel Adamowicz, mayor of the major seaport and shipbuilding city.

Today, Japan regards Poland an important economic partner as the Eastern European country has displayed strength and stability the past few years.

Since 2006, the Polish economy has grown at least 6 percent due to a surge in foreign direct investment, which was estimated at 15 billion euros that year.

Aside from falling unemployment, Polish exports have also grown the past two years by nearly 20 percent, registering a value of nearly 92 million euros.

Taking advantage of this robust growth, at least 230 Japanese companies have established operations in Poland, which posseses several advantages over nearby locations.

With over 500 higher education institutes, the country boasts a large population of highly skilled workers.

"We noticed that the Polish are very enthusiastic about their work and are also very quick learners," says Atsuho Maeda, director of the Japan External Trade Organization in Poland.

Polish Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of the Economy Waldemar Pawlak

Another of Poland's advantages is its location at the center of the 25-member European Union. For transport and logistics companies, the country appears to be an ideal place to oversee the distribution and movement of goods.

"Our company has done very well holding storage facilities in the Baltic Sea and sending products to Russia from Western Europe," shares MOL Europe General Manager Jaroslaw Grochowski

And as the beneficiary of EU funds, those seaports are being further modernized to provide more extensive connections.

With almost 40 million people, Poland represents more than onethird of consumers from the 10 newest EU member countries.

"Our country is the 30th largest market in the world. In 2007, we spent around 5.5 billion euros on cars alone. The biggest Japanese corporations are present in Poland because they see the country as a steady source of investment," says Pawel Stelmaszczyk, vice president for foreign direct investment of the Polish Information and Foreign Investment Agency.

"Some of them entered the country buying state-owned enterprises in the early 1990s and helped privatize them," he adds.

Japanese Ambassador to Poland Ryuichi Tanabe

Meanwhile, Poland has also received much funding ahead of the country's co-hosting of the UEFA European Football Championship in 2012.

"The European Union has granted us over 67 billion euros. We aim to use this budget on improving infrastructure, especially because we are aiming to host Euro 2012, and also for research and development," shares Katarzyna Zajdel-Kurowska, undersecretary of state from the Ministry of Finance.

A large portion of EU funds is also earmarked for the construction and improvement of special economic zones, which are planned to speed up the development outside the capital Warsaw.

"One of the biggest manufacturing plants in Poland is owned by Toshiba to assemble our LCD TVs," says Toshiba TEC President Zbigniew Poro.

The importance of bilateral ties was made clear in December 2008, when Polish President Lech Kaczynski visited Japan, where he and his wife were welcomed by Prime Minister Taro Aso.