Poland braces for clashes with new nationalist president
Karol Nawrocki, a political novice, will be inaugurated Wednesday after winning a June 1 election in a major blow for Prime Minister Donald Tusk's pro-EU government.
Nawrocki's close-run victory against liberal candidate Rafal Trzaskowski confirmed the high degree of political polarisation in the EU and NATO member state, a key supporter of its neighbour Ukraine.
Presidents in Poland can initiate as well as veto legislation, and have some influence over the country's foreign and defence policies.
The current president, Andrzej Duda, had already been at loggerheads with Tusk over many issues, including easing an almost total ban on abortion.
But relations are likely to be even worse under Nawrocki as the political climate heats up ahead of parliamentary elections planned for 2027, analysts said.
"I have no doubt that Mr Nawrocki will do everything to annoy us," said Tusk, who warned that he would not let Nawrocki "demolish" his government.
Speaking in an interview with the TVN news channel, Tusk also emphasised that the country's policies were "my responsibility and will remain so".
Nawrocki has repeatedly branded Tusk's government as "the worst in the history" of democratic Poland.
He has promised to be "an active president" from the start and has said he wants to "stimulate" the government with various bills.
The government holds a parliamentary majority but the two sides may be forced to make some compromises.
"Both parties should realise that engaging in intense confrontation is obviously not the way forward," said Piotr Trudnowski, a member of Klub Jagiellonski, a Christian-Democrat think tank.
- 'Poland First, Poles First' -
Ewa Marciniak, a political scientist at the University of Warsaw, said that Nawrocki would have to work together with the government on foreign policy -- an area in which he has "no experience".
During the election campaign, he highlighted the importance of ties with the United States.
An admirer of US President Donald Trump, Nawrocki met with the US leader briefly at the White House shortly before the first round of the election.
"It is precisely from this that he will build his foreign policy, at least initially," Marciniak said.
Nawrocki will face a highly experienced pro-EU duo -- Tusk, a former president of the European Council, and Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski.
Trudnowski said Nawrocki would "not be as enthusiastic" as his predecessor on ties with Ukraine.
During his campaign, Nawrocki opposed the idea of NATO membership for Ukraine and criticised Kyiv for not having "shown gratitude for what the Poles have done".
Under his slogan "Poland First, Poles First", he was critical of some of the benefits received by the more than one million Ukrainian refugees in the country.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has congratulated Nawrocki and emphasised the importance of close ties with Poland -- a vital transit country for military and humanitarian supplies to Ukraine.
After speaking to Nawrocki by phone on Thursday, Zelensky said the two had agreed to visit each other and seek forms of cooperation "that will bring real results for both our countries and our people".
Zelensky said he was "thankful for the readiness to work together and for the assurance of continued support for Ukraine".
sw/dt/gv/tc
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
18 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Post-Brexit chaos as EU citizens living in Britain wrongly barred from UK
EU citizens waiting for the government to decide their pre-Brexit residency status have been wrongly refused entry to the UK, forcing them to give up their lives here. The Independent Monitoring Authority for Citizens' Rights Agreements (IMA) has expressed 'serious concerns' after individuals who left to go on holiday or visit family were barred from entering Britain on their return. Among those affected was a 34-year-old Spanish woman who was removed from the UK despite showing Home Office documents which proved her right to live and work in the UK. She had flown to Spain to see her sister and her new baby at Christmas, The Guardian reported. Another EU citizen, Greek Cypriot Costa Koushiappis, was forcibly removed after taking a short trip to Amsterdam in November, the paper said. The IMA has now written to the Home Office, warning that those waiting for a decision on their residency should not be removed if they make short trips overseas, including for business or leisure. It is advised that those who hold a valid 'certificate of application' (CoA) from the Home Office show it to Border Force officials at airports or ports to prove they are allowed to travel. Miranda Biddle, chief executive of the IMA, said: 'Our position is that a citizen with a valid certificate of application has a right to exit and enter the UK while waiting for a decision on their EU settlement scheme application, subject to providing additional documentation required at the border.' She said she was 'keen to continue to work with the government' to 'ensure citizens are not discouraged from exercising their rights'. The group has called on the Home Office to clarify the CoA rules before a new system requiring visitors to the UK to have 'electronic travel authorisations' (ETAs) is enforced. Campaign group the3million said it was 'very disappointed' that the IMA had agreed with Border Force's approach of asking EU citizens to carry documents to prove their residence before Brexit took effect on 31 December 2020. A CoA was sufficient proof of rights until such time as a final decision is taken, the group said. A Home Office spokesperson said: 'All individuals with a certificate of application are made aware that they may be asked for evidence to show that they qualify under the scheme before they are allowed entry to the UK. Equivalent guidance has been issued to Border Force officers and published online.'
Yahoo
33 minutes ago
- Yahoo
How Zelensky can save Ukraine (and himself)
For European diplomats, officials and analysts, Vladimir Putin has done little to soften his long-standing war aims in Ukraine. They say the Russian president wants nothing less than a Kremlin-friendly government in Kyiv, Ukraine blocked from joining Nato and the size of its armed forces curtailed. When Putin first discussed the parameters of a peace deal with Donald Trump in February 2025, demanding an election as the price for a ceasefire appeared a realistic way of toppling Volodymyr Zelensky's government. But as the months have gone by, the US president has slowly appeared to tilt his favour from Moscow to Kyiv. The apparent change in direction in the White House has made it harder for Moscow to make these sorts of ultimatums. Maintaining these demands cements Putin as the main barrier to Mr Trump's peace efforts. Now, with the Russian and American leaders set for their first face-to-face meeting since 2019, Putin needs another way to sell his vision for removing Kyiv's Western-facing government. Could the key to sowing further chaos through a US-backed peace settlement lie in Ukraine's own constitution? Kyiv's laws state that its president or parliament cannot legally cede territory without a nationwide referendum. Practically, that would not currently be possible, given that Russia occupies around 20 per cent of Ukraine. And any attempt to act unilaterally and overrule the constitution would foment unrest – not least among the soldiers who have fought so hard to defend their homeland for more than three years. Mr Zelensky's position would probably be untenable. For this reason, when Washington and Moscow were exploring a deal that would bring about a ceasefire if Ukraine were to withdraw its troops from the Donbas regions of Donetsk and Luhansk, Mr Zelensky was forced to speak out very loudly against it. Militarily, the Ukrainian president would have got nothing in return, other than a halt to the fighting, while Russia would have been allowed to bypass some of Ukraine's stiffest defences for free. There was some talk of Russian forces being made to withdraw from the northern region of Sumy and neighbouring Kharkiv. This strategy, according to Jaroslava Barbieri, a research fellow at Chatham House's Ukraine Forum, was designed by Putin to position Mr Zelensky as the main blockage to peace in Mr Trump's eyes. 'I'd say in demanding swathes of Ukrainian territory as part of a peace deal, Putin is aware the condition is unacceptable for most Ukrainians,' Ms Barbieri said. Rejecting the offer could 'portray Ukraine's position as unco-operative and ungrateful to Trump's peace-brokering efforts,' she added. Ms Barbieri said: 'It could drive a wedge between Trump and European allies, who have reiterated the importance of preserving Ukraine's sovereignty. 'And ... potentially destabilise Ukrainian society by mobilising grievances among the minority who are willing to accept concessions to end the war.' Polling by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology released in June found that just 38 per cent of Ukrainians were willing to accept territorial losses 'in order to achieve peace as soon as possible and preserve independence'. In comparison, 52 per cent said they were firmly against ceding land 'even if this makes the war last longer'. But Mr Zelensky has accepted that some form of cession of territory will be necessary to end the war. Without it, he'd be likely to lose support of the Americans, and eventually European allies would start to fade away. There will be, Mr Trump declared on Monday: 'Some swapping, some changes to land.' Sources have told The Telegraph that the Ukrainian president could be ready to stop fighting, freeze the front line and hand over de facto control of territories occupied by Russian forces to Moscow as part of any settlement. These include swathes of Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia, Kherson and Crimea. Mr Trump added: 'We're going to try to get some of that territory back for Ukraine.' The key to Mr Zelensky managing the process and selling it back to his public will be in the language. De jure recognition of Russia's control would require a referendum, and would be likely to stoke tensions in the population, enough to hurt Mr Zelensky at the ballot box of any future election. Handing de facto control, which is not legally recognised, in acceptance of the temporary reality of the situation on the ground is more likely. One possibility for this being discussed amongst war-watchers would be to replicate the Sino-British Joint Declaration signed between China and the UK to decide on Hong Kong's future. That deal saw Britain return sovereignty to Beijing in 1997, but under the condition that it would maintain Hong Kong's special status for 50 years. Could Ukraine and Russia agree to recognise that the Donbas regions are legally Ukrainian but managed as if they belonged to Moscow for a set period of time? That would be likely to settle Mr Zelensky's referendum problem by kicking any real decision into the long grass. The bloodshed would stop and the line in the sand would be drawn – for now. However, Moscow would use the time to sow anti-Ukrainian sentiment in the region, with the intention of making its eventual return almost impossible and unpalatable for Ukrainians, who have all lost a father, brother or friend in the war. Whatever the proposal, it would appear that Putin has covertly edged closer to one of his war aims again by leaving Mr Zelensky with a decision that will shape his future as president. And he has put the spotlight back on Ukraine's leader. Mr Trump cut through the public protestations on Monday. The US president said: 'I was a little bothered by the fact that Zelensky was saying: 'Well, I have to get constitutional approval.' I mean, he's got approval to go into war and kill everybody, but he needs approval to do a land swap?' The final representations will be made by Mr Zelensky and other European leaders in a video call with Mr Trump on Wednesday. Forty-eight hours later, Putin will arrive in Alaska. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. Solve the daily Crossword
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
German economic sentiment tumbles as EU–US trade deal underwhelms
Germany's economic sentiment fell sharply in August, snapping a three-month recovery and casting renewed doubts over the country's growth outlook. The decline follows a controversial EU–US trade deal that has disappointed financial experts and left key industrial sectors exposed to steeper tariff burdens. The ZEW Indicator of Economic Sentiment dropped by 18 points to 34.7 in August, falling well short of expectations for a more modest retreat to 40. This reverses part of the strong recovery seen in July, when sentiment had climbed to its highest since February 2022. The gauge for current conditions also deteriorated, slipping to -68.6 from -59.5 a month earlier, missing forecasts of -60. The downturn reflects concerns over Germany's weak second-quarter performance and the perceived asymmetry of the newly signed transatlantic trade pact. 'Financial market experts are disappointed by the announced EU–US trade deal,' said ZEW president, professor Achim Wambach. 'In August 2025, the ZEW indicator experiences a substantial decline, also due to the poor performance of the German economy in the second quarter. The outlook has worsened in particular for the chemical and pharmaceutical industries. The mechanical engineering and metal sectors as well as the automotive industry are also severely affected.' Sentiment across the eurozone mirrored Germany's decline. The ZEW expectations index for the bloc dropped 11 points to 25.1, while the gauge of current conditions fell by 7 points to minus 31.2. Initial hopes of relative resilience in the eurozone have been tempered as economists revise down growth expectations for the second half of the year. Unequal trade deal weighs on sentiment On 27 July, just days before a 30% US tariff on EU goods was set to take effect, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and US President Donald Trump reached a last-minute agreement. The accord included a basic 15% tariff on EU exports, with steeper levies of 50% on steel, aluminium and copper. Aircraft and aircraft parts were exempted. As part of the deal, the EU also pledged to purchase $750 billion (€685 billion) in US energy exports over three years. The political optics were widely seen as favourable to Washington. Related Which European economy stands to suffer the most from US tariffs? Who got the best trade deal with the US - the EU or UK? 'A one-sided trade deal to reduce the US trade deficit with the EU,' remarked Oliver Rakau, chief Germany economist at Oxford Economics. "Politically, this agreement looks like a clear win for the US," he added. The deal 'is at the better end of the spectrum of what could realistically be achieved,' Isabelle Mateos y Lago, economist at BNP Paribas, noted. She highlighted that the effective tariff rate has been multiplied tenfold compared to the start of the year, though she sees the shock as manageable given exports to the US account for under 3% of EU GDP. Bill Diviney, economist at ABN Amro, described the agreement as a product of Europe's weak bargaining position, highlighting economic stagnation and rising inflation pressures. 'Berlin and France were unwilling to suffer economic pain to risk a better outcome,' he said. 'The EU remains dependent on the US for its security, both in terms of military support as for military imports and remains a net importer of energy,' he added. Markets cautious as US inflation data looms Market reaction to the ZEW release was muted. Germany's DAX index remained broadly steady at 24,050 points. The euro dipped slightly, down 0.1% to $1.1600. Investor focus now turns to the upcoming US inflation report for July, with the Consumer Price Index expected to have risen 2.9% year-on-year, up from 2.7% in June. Markets are watching closely for any signs that higher tariffs are beginning to filter through to consumer prices. Money markets continue to price in an 85% probability of a 25-basis-point rate cut by the Federal Reserve at its next meeting, as signs of cooling labour market strengthen the case for easing. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
