Generał broni Edward Pietrzyk (3 November 19495 May 2021) was a Polish military officer, diplomat and general in the

Polish Army The Land Forces () are the Army, land forces of the Polish Armed Forces. They currently contain some 110,000 active personnel and form many components of the European Union and NATO deployments around the world. Poland's recorded military histor ...

. He was commander-in-chief of the

Polish Land Forces The Land Forces () are the land forces of the Polish Armed Forces. They currently contain some 110,000 active personnel and form many components of the European Union and NATO deployments around the world. Poland's recorded military history str ...

Early life and career

Pietrzyk was born in Rawa Mazowiecka in 1949. In 1971 he graduated from the Military University of Technology (WAT) of

Warsaw Warsaw, officially the Capital City of Warsaw, is the capital and List of cities and towns in Poland, largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the Vistula, River Vistula in east-central Poland. Its population is officially estimated at ...

, after which he served for six years in the 2nd Artillery Brigade. In 1978 he moved to

Moscow Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...

, where he graduated from the local Military Academy of Artillery. In 1988 he became the deputy commander of Polish artillery and rocket forces of the Warsaw Military Area. In 1990, Pietrzyk graduated from the General Staff Academy of the

USSR The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

and after two years of service as the deputy chief of operations of the

General Staff A military staff or general staff (also referred to as army staff, navy staff, or air staff within the individual services) is a group of officers, Enlisted rank, enlisted, and civilian staff who serve the commanding officer, commander of a ...

, he became the chief of the Operational Command of the Polish General Staff. Between 1998 and 2000 he was the deputy commander of the Multinational Corps North East composed of forces of Poland,

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, also known as Czechia, and historically known as Bohemia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the south ...

Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...

Estonia Estonia, officially the Republic of Estonia, is a country in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, and to the east by Ru ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

Latvia Latvia, officially the Republic of Latvia, is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is one of the three Baltic states, along with Estonia to the north and Lithuania to the south. It borders Russia to the east and Belarus to t ...

Lithuania Lithuania, officially the Republic of Lithuania, is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea, bordered by Latvia to the north, Belarus to the east and south, P ...

and

Slovakia Slovakia, officially the Slovak Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the west, and the Czech Republic to the northwest. Slovakia's m ...

. Between 2000 and September 2006 he was commander of the Land Forces of Poland. In 2000 he graduated from the National War College, Washington, D.C. Between April 2007 and January 2010, Pietrzyk served as Polish ambassador to

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

(followed by Stanisław Smoleń). From January 2010 till 2014, Pietrzyk served as Poland's ambassador to

North Korea North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders China and Russia to the north at the Yalu River, Yalu (Amnok) an ...

, followed by Krzysztof Ciebień.

2007 Baghdad incident

On 3 October 2007, Pietrzyk was wounded by a roadside bomb in a probable assassination attempt in

Baghdad Baghdad ( or ; , ) is the capital and List of largest cities of Iraq, largest city of Iraq, located along the Tigris in the central part of the country. With a population exceeding 7 million, it ranks among the List of largest cities in the A ...

. He was flown to a military hospital by a Blackwater Security helicopter. Pietrzyk received burns to about 20 percent of his body, including his air passageways, and was held in an artificial coma to reduce the pain. The

United Nations Security Council The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN) and is charged with ensuring international peace and security, recommending the admission of new UN members to the General Assembly, an ...

convened a meeting to condemn this attack.

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pietrzyk, Edward 1949 births 2021 deaths People from Rawa Mazowiecka Polish generals Knights Commander of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany Recipients of the Order of Polonia Restituta Recipients of the Gold Cross of Merit (Poland) Military Academy of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Soviet Union alumni Recipients of the Legion of Merit Ambassadors of Poland to Iraq Ambassadors of Poland to North Korea