Latest news with #pro-German
Straits Times
4 days ago
- Politics
- Straits Times
Pro-Trump nationalist Nawrocki wins Poland's presidential election, rattling Europe's unity
Incoming Polish President Karol Nawrocki is a national conservative determined to obstruct the liberal agenda of Prime Minister Donald Tusk. PHOTO: REUTERS – Just two years after the liberals triumphed in Poland's parliamentary elections, the country is once again shifting sharply to the right. Mr Karol Nawrocki, the winner of the June 1 presidential election, is a national conservative determined to obstruct the liberal agenda of Prime Minister Donald Tusk. His victory not only jeopardises Poland's fragile return to democratic norms and rule of law but also delivers a serious blow to the European Union's (EU) unity. While the Polish presidency is largely ceremonial, the president wields significant power in key areas, including the right to veto legislation. This applies to judicial reforms, budget laws and military appointments. Although a presidential veto can be overridden by a three-fifths parliamentary majority, the current liberal coalition under Mr Tusk does not hold enough seats to do so. 'For the European Union, Mr Nawrocki's win is especially troubling because of the political chaos that is likely to follow in Poland. Mr Tusk's government will now be forced to focus on domestic infighting and the de facto start of the 2027 parliamentary campaign, leaving it little room to act on the European stage,' Dr Agnieszka Lada-Konefal, the deputy director of the German Poland Institute, said in an interview with The Straits Times. Just weeks ago, EU members France, Germany and Poland, alongside Britain, had demonstrated a new alignment in their policy on the war in Ukraine. During a joint visit to Kyiv in May, the leaders reaffirmed their support for the country invaded by Russia in 2022, and presented a united front in contrast to the increasingly erratic foreign policy signals from Washington. US President Donald Trump, through repeated softening of his demands on Russian President Vladimir Putin, has raised doubts about the US' reliability as a Nato partner and an ally of Ukraine, leaving much of Europe feeling strategically isolated. Ahead of the election, Washington had actively supported Mr Nawrocki. Not only did Mr Trump welcome the then candidate to the White House in early May, but US Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem also openly endorsed him, calling Mr Nawrocki 'a leader as strong as Trump himself', and stating that he 'must become Poland's next president'. Such declarations carry weight in Poland, where the US has long been seen as the country's ultimate protector – often more trusted than the EU. Years of anti-German rhetoric from the political right have also left a mark. These parties accuse Germany of trying to dominate its eastern neighbour, continue to demand massive war reparations from Berlin and label Poland's liberals as overly pro-German. Narrow margin reflects polarisation of the nation Mr Nawrocki's victory, with just 50.9 per cent of the vote, came thanks to strong support not only from the conservative Law and Justice (PiS) party, but also from parties positioned even further to the right. He narrowly defeated liberal challenger Rafal Trzaskowski, who garnered 49.1 per cent. Voting patterns reveal a starkly divided country of more than 38 million. Liberal forces dominate Poland's western regions – particularly those bordering Germany – while the east, more rural and conservative, remains a stronghold of nationalist support. Mr Tusk and his coalition have failed to win over voters in these regions, despite initiating a political turnaround after defeating the PiS government in 2023. That government, in power from 2015 to 2023, had heavily politicised the judiciary and media, undermining democratic institutions. Brussels responded at the time with serious concerns over Poland's rule of law, imposing sanctions after the PiS introduced a disciplinary chamber to the Polish Supreme Court that could punish judges viewed as politically inconvenient. On the race leading up to the presidential polls on June 1, Dr Lada-Konefal said: 'This was a deeply personal campaign. It was less about policy and more about a bitter battle between two political camps.' She added: 'The election confirmed the consolidation of the right – a trend we're seeing elsewhere in Europe and in the US.' That consolidation means that even candidates like Mr Nawrocki – largely unknown, politically inexperienced, and dogged by scandals – can succeed. Allegations against him include shady real estate deals, links to prostitution and involvement in organised street brawls. Yet, much like Mr Trump, these controversies appear to not have affected his standing. The fragmented Polish right rallied behind Mr Nawrocki. A historian by training, Mr Nawrocki, 42, comes from a working-class neighbourhood in the northern port city of Gdansk. His father was a lathe operator and an amateur boxer. This modest background appeals to voters who feel alienated from the urban liberal elite. In contrast, Mr Trzaskowski, 53, has served as Warsaw mayor since 2018, and the liberal parties are perceived by many as representing the academic and cultural establishment. Sociologist Lukasz Pawlowski explained this sentiment in a recent interview with the national newspaper Gazeta. He said: 'There is a new top-down polarisation that is being accelerated by a global storm of discontent. Frustration with the establishment is especially high among 18- to 39-year-olds. Both major parties, the liberal Civic Platform and the conservative PiS, are seen as representing the upper classes – certainly not the working class, particularly in the eyes of young voters.' While Mr Nawrocki's political programme remains vague, several tendencies are already clear: He is expected to pursue a pro-US, anti-German, and hardline migration policy. He has repeatedly criticised the presence of the more than one million Ukrainian refugees in Poland, accusing them of draining social services and exploiting the healthcare system through what he called 'medical tourism'. In using this politically loaded term, Mr Nawrocki is alleging that Ukrainians travel back and forth between Ukraine and Poland to take advantage of Poland's healthcare system, creating longer waiting times for Polish citizens. Moreover, Mr Nawrocki, although generally supportive of Ukraine, opposes Kyiv's accession to Nato and the EU until Ukraine officially acknowledges responsibility for a 1943 massacre in western Ukraine of Poles during World War II. However, he has also clearly positioned himself against Russia. Setting a path away from Europe For Europe, Mr Nawrocki's election is disconcerting news. 'Mr Nawrocki's presidency has set the country on a path away from Europe,' said Ms Marta Prochwicz Jazowska, deputy head of the Warsaw office of the think-tank European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR). Although Poland will maintain its commitment to the US and its role on Nato's Eastern Flank, 'the liberal Tusk government will only be able to maintain Poland in the core group of European countries for another two years at best', she added. 'Nawrocki will constrain Tusk's long-term European project of pivoting Poland away from over-reliance on the US,' she said. Ms Prochwicz Jazowska also expects more anti-European, anti-German and anti-migration rhetoric in public discourse. Mr Nawrocki's proximity to the US also suggests he may align with Washington's more confrontational stance on China. Although he has not spoken directly about China, he is unlikely to support the more pragmatic engagement pursued by previous Polish governments – particularly within the framework of the '16+1' initiative, which links China to central and eastern European countries. In recent years, China's growing ties with Russia and its tacit support for Russia in the ongoing war in Ukraine have led to a cooling of this cooperation. Markus Ziener is a professor at Media University Berlin and writes on political and security issues. Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
New Statesman
5 days ago
- Politics
- New Statesman
What the world gets wrong about Poland's election
As the country heads to the polls for the second round of voting today (1 June), Poland is torn by two very different presidential candidates – the pro-European liberal Rafał Trzaskowski and the right-wing nationalist Karol Nawrocki. It's impossible to predict who might win. It is also increasingly difficult to ignore the growing disillusionment that Poles feel toward politics. Trzaskowski, who belongs to the Civic Coalition party and narrowly won the most votes in the first round of voting on 18 May, has been a firm supporter of the European Union and the strengthening of foreign ties. Though this position delights Poland's neighbours and the West, the sentiment is not shared by a large proportion of the electorate who have been sceptical of pro-EU candidates in the past (including current prime minister Donald Tusk). Such candidates tend to be branded pro-German and mocked at rallies as elitist or anti-Polish. The liberal mayor of Warsaw, Trzaskowski's support comes from the metropolitan-based, younger, professional classes. Yet his critics accuse him of selling out the country's sovereignty and undermining the Polish traditions and values that are closely linked to the Catholic church. In contrast to Trzaskowski, the nationalist historian Nawrocki has no political experience, despite being backed by the right-wing Law and Justice Party, which lost power under Donald Tusk's coalition. He's expressed admiration for Donald Trump's Maga agenda and currently heads the Institute of National Remembrance which embraces nationalist historical narratives — they reject Poland's involvement in the Holocaust under Nazi occupation, for example — and opposes publication of 'false information' that 'dishonours or harms the Polish nation'. His anti-Russian views combined with his pledge to block Ukraine's accession to Nato appeals to Trzaskowski's critics and could capture the votes that were cast for far-right politician Sławomir Mentzen in the first round of voting. Yet a shared beer between Mentzen and Trzaskowski, organised as part of Mentzen's YouTube coverage of the election, is thought to have shifted the support of the far-right politician's voters towards the mayor of Warsaw. Nawrocki hasn't expressed a strong position on many of the country's most pressing issues, like the predicted 289-billion-złoty (£57 billion) deficit for 2025 or immigration. Many of his opinions on topics like education and abortion mirror those of the Law and Justice party. Despite Trzaskowski narrowly winning the first round, it's impossible to say who will win the second vote. The final presidential debate, hosted by right-leaning Republika TV, took place on 28 May in the town of Końskie, though Trzaskowski made the bold move not to appear. (Trzaskowski lost in the 2020 election to Andrzej Duda after not turning up to the debate in Końskie; soon after the debate, Trzaskowski plummeted in the polls.) With both candidates neck-in-neck in the polls, the Polish media can't decide whether Trzaskowski has once again lost his shot at presidency, or whether he will break through the 'curse of Końskie'. In many ways, the real momentum in this election campaign has come from abroad. A record number of 695,000 expats are registered to vote on 1 June, perhaps motivated by the fact that in Poland, presidents have a formal role in foreign and defence policies. A Trzaskowski win could establish Poland as a key player on the European stage and, as a Tusk ally, he could also aid the prime minister's progressive reform. A Nawrocki win, meanwhile, could lead to the disengagement with the European Union on all matters excluding trade and potentially block Ukraine's ascension into Nato. His stance on Poland reaching Net Zero by 2050 will also have an impact on the EU's climate change policies. Yet this international excitement barely ripples over the Polish public. The truth is, neither candidate is likely to have a ground-shaking impact on the lives of the electorate. A Trzaskowski win would likely bring with it an initial burst of hope, which is almost certain to grow into disillusionment over his often-contradictory positions on the LGBTQ rights, immigration and healthcare. A Nawrocki win, on the other hand, would likely isolate younger, progressive voters by prioritising the country's frustrated right-wing. Nawrocki's victory could cause a further spike in emigration among young people — already a long-running problem in Poland — as the historian looks to hinder Donald Tusk's progressive agenda. Neither candidate presents solutions to the most pressing issues that divide the country, such as the influx of migrants crossing the Poland-Belarus border, the continuing war in Ukraine and inflation. It's no surprise that turn out is now predicted to be just over 50 per cent in the second round. Rather than uniting, the political promises of this election campaign have only disillusioned the country more. [See also: Sanction Netanyahu's cabinet ultras now] Subscribe to The New Statesman today from only £8.99 per month Subscribe Related
The Citizen
14-05-2025
- The Citizen
Got to hand it to the king
'The Prince of Wales slept here' Two things people know about King Edward VIII of Britain – assuming they know anything – is he had to abdicate his throne to marry an American divorcee and that he was subsequently suspected of having pro-German sympathies during World War II. Few, though, are aware that he toured South Africa as the Prince of Wales in 1925, in an attempt to heal emotional wounds generated by the second Anglo-Boer war a generation earlier, as well as the Boer Rebellion of 1914-15. Or that he was an avid golfer. I discovered both when my lady Rose-Mariè and I checked into the lovely Royal St Andrews Hotel in Port Alfred a few weeks ago. ALSO READ: A holiday to remember The prince who played through pain Taking a stroll through the place – it was built in 1924 by a former sergeant- major in Scotland's Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders – we came across a photograph of the prince. He was dressed in the uniform of a colonel of the Grenadier Guards. Next to it was a framed recollection 'The Prince of Wales slept here' that bears quoting in part: 'His visit was scheduled as a restful interlude during a hectic British Empire tour – so hectic that when he arrived in Port Alfred his right hand was bandaged after so much cordial hand-shaking. 'This, however, didn't affect his golf. He played nine holes before the start of Saturday's ceremonial programme and a full course of 18 holes twice over the same afternoon! 'He then spent all day Sunday on the golf course, with some final rounds on Monday morning 'driving straight and powerfully. There lay the strength of his play… his putting was regarded as less expert.'' NOW READ: Port Edward: A bridge too far
