“Time is running out”, stressed yesterday the leader of the Polish opposition, Donald Tusk, received with honors in Brussels by the representatives of the European institutions just ten days after the legislative elections that ended eight years of ultra-conservative governments , even before it has been entrusted to form a Government.
The purpose of his trip is to begin to “restore” Poland’s position in the Union and accelerate the unblocking of the 34,000 million euros in aid that Brussels keeps frozen in retaliation for the lack of judicial independence in the country. “I had to take this initiative because all methods, including some unorthodox ones, must be used to save the money to which the Poles are entitled”, explained Tusk in his appearance with Ursula von der Leyen , president of the Community Executive. “I am really proud of my compatriots, they have shown that the anti-democratic and anti-European atmosphere does not have to be a trend”, said Tusk.
His party, Plataforma Cívica, a member of the European People’s Party, was the second most voted on October 15 and plans to govern in coalition with other moderate parties that add up to 54% of the seats in the Sejm, the national Parliament. The music coming from Warsaw is honey to the ears of the EU institutions, with which the outright anti-European Government of Law and Justice (PiS) has been at war without pause for eight years, often in tandem with Viktor’s Hungary Orbán, a cooperation broken by the war in Ukraine, in which Budapest is closer to Moscow than to Brussels.
Von der Leyen, who received Tusk as a member of the European People’s Party, nevertheless contained her enthusiasm and was only allowed to celebrate that the “record turnout” in the elections, the highest since the end of communism, “has shown that the Poles feel strongly linked to democracy” and that he would surely find “many points in common” in his talks with his party colleague.
However, unlocking the Next Generation funds allocated to Warsaw – 22,500 million in grants and 11,500 million in loans – may be more complicated and slower than the future Polish rulers intend, community sources in Brussels warn. The procedure opened by the EU is linked to the need to make changes that depoliticize the Polish judicial structure, but undoing the reforms approved by the Executive of Mateusz Morawiecki will require several months. The process, moreover, could be torpedoed by the Polish president, Andrzej Duda.
The urgency Tusk alluded to has to do with the uniqueness of the Next Generation EU funds. Because they are designed to act as part of a shock plan to counter the economic effects of the pandemic, they have an expiration date: as of now, any money not spent before the end of 2026 will be lost for good. Spain – the most advanced country in the implementation of these funds, which are released as soon as the milestones of the national recovery programs are met – began receiving and spending funds in 2021.
“We return to this [European] path with the conviction that it is the will of the Polish voters”, who have made it clear that “they still care about democracy, the rule of law, freedom of expression and European unity”, he said. underline Tusk, which opened the door to a constructive relationship with the EU.
His trip to Brussels, where he also met with the president of the European Council, Charles Michel, and the president of the European Parliament, Roberta Metsola, may put pressure on the Polish president, who is currently reluctant to give him the initiative to form a Government.
In view of his latest statements, it is not ruled out that Duda will first give the initiative to PiS, which was in first place with 35% of the votes, but has no options to form a government, and Tusk will have to wait- se until December to be invested as prime minister, a position he already held between 2007 and 2014, before being elected president of the European Council.
