Reply #9: Obama has cancelled his trip to Poland, the US will be represented by the ambassador

[MiniMe]

Warsaw, Poland (CNN) -- World leaders' plans to reach Poland this weekend for the funeral of President Lech Kaczynski were in limbo as volcanic ash from Iceland continued to ground flights to and from Europe.

President Obama canceled his trip to Poland because of the ash, the White House said. The United States will be represented at the funeral by the U.S. ambassador to Poland, Lee Feinstein.

"I spoke with acting President Komorowski and told him that I regret that I will not be able to make it to Poland due to the volcanic ash that is disrupting air travel over Europe," Obama said in a statement released by the White House. "Michelle and I continue to have the Polish people in our thoughts and prayers, and will support them in any way I can as they recover from this terrible tragedy."

While French President Nicolas Sarkozy was already in Poland on Saturday and prepared to attend services the next day, other key leaders who planned to attend, including German Chancellor Angela Merkel, still faced possible cancellations due to the ash.

...snip

http://www.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/europe/04/17/poland.president.funeral/index.html?hpt=T2

Seems like the sensible thing to do.