A spokesman for the Polish foreign ministry has told reporters that the visit, which is taking place at the invitation of US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, could "give a new lease of life to Polish-US strategic dialogue."
The spokesman, Łukasz Jasina, said: "This is extremely important in the context of the current developments in close proximity to Poland."
Rau is scheduled to hold talks with Blinken on Saturday. The visit also includes meetings with members of Congress, both Republicans and Democrats.
Jasina told the media that the agenda of Rau's talks in Washington "covers current issues of Euro-Atlantic security, primarily the crises triggered by the aggressive policies and actions of the Russian Federation and Belarus."
Jasina said that Rau was heading to the United States in dual capacity as Polish foreign minister and Chairperson-in-Office of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE).
On January 1, Poland assumed the year-long chairmanship of the OSCE, with the country’s top diplomat becoming its Chairperson-in-Office.
Later this month, Rau is due to visit Ukraine and Russia.
Jasina said Rau would meet with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov "in his capacity as Chairperson-in-Office of the OSCE."
(mk/gs)