Warsaw. The 1956 Suez Crisis revealed the unity of the West were less than what it had proclaimed. That certainly gave Rapacki hope that disagreements between Britain and France with the United States might be exploited by Polish diplomacy to achieve its goals, the most important of which was to prevent West Germany from acquiring nuclear weapons, which might someday be used against Poland. On 2 October 1957, he presented at the United Nations his plan for a nuclear-free zone in Central Europe (comprising Czechoslovakia, Poland, East and West Germany), known as the "Rapacki Plan". The West rejected the plan because it feared the massive conventional forces in the East. Rapacki died in Warsaw, aged 60, on 10 October 1970. Civilian, national and military orders Rapacki was awarded multiple orders, such as the Order of the Builders of People's Poland and the Order of the Banner of Work. He also got the Order of the Southern Cross, and in 1965 he received the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic. He was awarded the Order of the People's Republic of Bulgaria by Todor Zhivkov in 1967. See also List of Poles Notes References Bibliography Ozinga, James R., The Rapacki Plan: the 1957 Proposal to Denuclearize Central Europe, and an Analysis of Its Rejection, Jefferson, NC, McFarland & Co, 1989, . Rapacki, Adam. "The Polish Plan for a Nuclear-Free Zone Today" International Affairs 39#1 pp. 1-12 online, a primary source. Stefancic, David. "The Rapacki Plan: A Case Study of European Diplomacy." East European Quarterly 21.4 (1987): 401–412. External links Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zones (NWFZ) At a Glance, Arms Control Association, July 2003. 1909 births 1970 deaths Politicians from Lviv People from the Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria Polish Austro-Hungarians Polish Socialist Party politicians Members of the Politburo of the Polish United Workers' Party Ministers of Foreign Affairs of Poland Members of the Polish Sejm 1947–1952 Members of the Polish Sejm 1952–1956 Members of the Polish Sejm 1957–1961 Members of the Polish Sejm 1961–1965 Members of the Polish Sejm 1965–1969 Diplomats of the Polish People's Republic Recipients of the Order of the Builders of People's Poland Prisoners of Oflag II-C Polish diplomats