Polish president rejected call from U.S. Secretary of State

WARSAW, Poland — Aides to Polish President Andrzej Duda have tacitly confirmed media reports that the president recently refused to accept a call from then-U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson.

The news reports say Tillerson was calling to discuss with Duda possible U.S. action over a new Polish law banning some statements about the Holocaust. Some days later, Duda endorsed the law. Asked about the reports Tuesday, Duda’s top aide, Andrzej Dera, said that “according to diplomacy’s rules’’ an official holding the rank of a minister does not make calls to a president.

Another Duda aide, Pawel Mucha, also would not deny the reports but insisted that Poland-U.S. relations are “strategically close.’’