WARSAW, Poland (AP) — Polish President Andrzej Duda said Wednesday that Poles will be able to travel to the U.S. without a visa starting next week, in a move by the Washington administration that has been long awaited by the Poles.

Duda said he was notified by the U.S. side that an official announcement would also be made Wednesday in Washington.

He said it was "important and good news" for the 37 million people in Poland and some 10 million Poles in the U.S.

Duda thanked President Donald Trump for including Poland in the visa-waiver program.

Standing alongside U.S. Ambassador Georgette Mosbacher, Duda said that starting Monday, Nov. 11 — Poland's Independence Day — Poles will not require visas for tourist or business trips of up to 90 days.

Both expressed joy at the announcement and Mosbacher said Duda had told her it was a matter of "national pride."

The decision has been long awaited by a nation that has been a staunch U.S. ally and one of its closest partners in Europe, with ever tightening political, trade and military ties.