Polish President Aleksander Kwasniewski said yesterday he was briefly suspected by Canadian authorities of being an illegal immigrant, during an unexpected late-night stopover on a flight back from Washington.
Mr Kwasniewski said a snowstorm forced his plane to divert from Gander, Newfoundland, to nearby St John's, as he returned from a visit during which he asked President George Bush to relax visa requirements for Polish citizens.
"We saw what it feels like when an unexpected guest arrives - who in the beginning is treated as a potential illegal immigrant. That is how we were treated," he told a news conference.
A Canadian foreign ministry spokeswoman said that because the plane had landed late in the evening, the passengers were taken to a transit area to see whether they wanted temporary visas. "At no time were they detained ... at no time was President Kwasniewski suspected of being an illegal alien."
Mr Kwasniewski said the group was only released after Polish sailors saw him and asked for autographs, proving that he was famous. The Canadian spokeswoman said she could not comment on this.