Warsaw threatens to drop Rome declaration
Polish Prime Minister Beata Szydło has threatened to block the joint declaration of the EU states at the anniversary summit in Rome even though the text has already been approved by all governments. She demands among other things that greater emphasis be placed on the unity of the EU in the text. The Polish press is annoyed that Warsaw is once again seeking to torpedo EU policy for domestic reasons.
The PiS itself is dividing the EU
It is absurd of Szydło to pretend that this is being done for the sake of European unity, Adam Szostkiewicz writes angrily in his blog with Polityka:
“Now let's compare the PiS's claims with a few facts: It claims to be acting for the sake of unity within the EU? If that's the case why is Szydło's government doing everything possible to divide the Union? Kaczyński's recent visit to London ahead of the talks between the EU and the UK about the terms of the Brexit are a clear sign of disloyalty vis-à-vis the EU. Kaczyński's Poland has slapped Brussels in the face while the latter, led by Tusk, is trying to create the best possible conditions for the EU before the negotiations begin.”
The latest foreign policy gaffe
Szydło just wants to chalk up points at home, Gazeta Wyborcza believes:
“The truth is that the Rome declaration was worked out in lengthy negotiations by carefully selected experts from each member state. ... Now everything is happening at the last minute, and Prime Minister Szydło knows that all too well. But after the meeting in Rome she can tell her voters the fairy tale that the only thing that will impress Europe is a hard stance on the part of the government in Warsaw, backed by party leader Kaczyński. Consequently the PiS's foreign policy is now dictated by domestic considerations. This shows how incapable the party and our country are - just as our recent refusal to vote for Tusk did too.”