The president of Poland plans to use a White House meeting with President Biden on Tuesday to propose that most NATO countries increase their military spending by at least half to meet what he sees as the growing threat of Russian aggression against Europe and the United States. The Polish president, Andrzej Duda, said that […]
Read MoreTag: Tusk, Donald
The Backlash to an Abortion Ban Helped Save Polish Democracy
Adam Bodnar, Poland’s new justice minister, recently explained to me the immense challenge of rebuilding liberal democracy in his country after an eight-year slide toward authoritarianism. Imagine, he said, that Donald Trump had won the last election and been in power for two terms instead of one. “What would be the damage?” he asked. After […]
Read MoreStandoff at Presidential Palace Shows Poland’s Right Won’t Go Quietly
Poland’s bumpy transition to a new government hit dramatic turbulence on Wednesday when a prominent hard-line minister in the former right-wing administration declared himself a “political prisoner” and announced he was going on a hunger strike to protest his arrest following conviction for abuse of power. Seeking to avoid a two-year jail sentence handed down […]
Read MorePolish Right Occupies State TV, Refusing to Accept Loss of Power
Amid a turbulent change of power, Poland’s main state television news channel went abruptly off the air on Wednesday, as the former governing party sent legislators and other supporters to the public broadcasting headquarters to try to prevent new management from taking over. Members of the ousted former government staged a sit-in inside a building […]
Read MoreWith a New Leader, Poland Prepares for a Course Change in Europe
Just hours after being sworn in, Poland’s new prime minister, Donald Tusk, left for a trip to Brussels on Wednesday to try to invigorate flagging European support for Ukraine and push for “full mobilization” against Russia’s military assault. In a speech to Parliament on Tuesday, Mr. Tusk outlined an assertive Polish foreign policy anchored in […]
Read MoreDonald Tusk Looks Set to Take Power in Poland
Poland’s newly elected Parliament torpedoed a long-shot effort by right-wing forces on Monday to stay in power despite losing a general election, opening the way for the opposition leader, Donald Tusk, to take over as leader of the biggest and most populous country on Europe’s formerly communist eastern flank. Legislators, as expected, rejected a new […]
Read MoreLaw and Justice Party Holds Narrow Lead in Poland Election
Centrist and progressive forces appeared capable of forming a new government in Poland after securing more seats in a critical general election on Sunday, despite the governing nationalist party, Law and Justice winning the most votes for a single party. Exit polls showing a strong second place finish by the main opposition group, Civic Coalition, […]
Read MorePoland’s Ruling Party Uses Germany as Boogeyman as Tough Election Looms
Amid rising alarm this summer in Poland and the Baltic States over a possible military attack from the east, the Polish Embassy in Lithuania requested an urgent meeting with the head of Germany’s diplomatic mission. Polish embassies in other European countries made similar requests. What the Polish diplomats wanted to talk about, however, was not […]
Read MoreIn Poland, Supporters of Opposition March in Warsaw Ahead of Key Election
Huge crowds marched through Poland’s capital, Warsaw, on Sunday, converging around a giant flag commemorating a 1945 uprising against Nazi Germany, as opponents of the governing party sought to rally voters for a critical general election that they see as the last chance to save the country’s hard-won democratic freedoms. The Warsaw city government, which […]
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