In this version, we talk about Poland. The groups that were not in charge before have won more seats in the election, which means the party that was ruling, called Law and Justice, will not be in charge anymore after eight years. To understand this big change and what it means for Poland in the European Union, we talk to Danuta Hübner. She is a member of the main group that was not in charge before, called Civic Platform. She used to be in charge of Europe-related matters in Poland and also worked in a European role. Now, she is a member of the European Parliament.
We asked Hübner why the PiS party in Poland hasn’t given up, even though they can’t form the next government. She said, “I think they’re very surprised and are trying to fix things in their party. They’re trying to understand what happened.” She also said that the Polish people have made it clear that the opposition should lead the government now. She trusts that the President of Poland, who usually supports the ruling party, will respect the majority of Poles who want a new government.
If the opposition takes power, we asked Hübner what it would mean for Poland and the EU. She said, “Remember when President Joe Biden said ‘America is back’? Well, now Poland is back in the European Union and in the world. The real, democratic Poland is back. The idea of Polexit is gone.
The connections with Madame Le Pen and far-right parties are over. We will rebuild trust and be active in European discussions.”
When asked about priorities, Hübner said, “We can’t afford to do things one after the other. We have to do everything at the same time. We can’t just focus on one thing, like the rule of law, and then think about other matters.”
We also asked if she sees a split in the Visegrad 4 group, with Poland and the Czech Republic on one side and Slovakia and Hungary on the other. She said, “Yes, you’re right about seeing this new division in the future.” She mentioned that Visegrad wasn’t working well recently, and there were differences on many issues.
She also noted that Mr. Fico, who recently won in Slovakia, has some disagreements with Hungary. So, the overall interests of these countries aren’t the same. Poland is clear that if their colleagues in the Visegrad group follow Mr. Orban’s path, they won’t do the same.
On relations with western European partners, Hübner is upbeat about the prospects for reviving the “Weimar Triangle” – a former forum consisting of France, Germany and Poland. “We have to rebuild relations with France and with Germany in particular.
Of course we still talk to the Germans and the French, so we still have something of the Weimar Triangle tradition. I don’t think it will cost much time or effort to get this Triangle back.”
Asked about Poland’s current strained relationship with Ukraine, Hübner asserts: “The support for Ukrainian refugees, for Ukrainian women and kids, that was civil society organising that, rather than the government.
And then the way the whole grain issue was handled was unnecessarily damaging to our relations. But let’s leave that to history. Now, with Poland’s reputation in Europe back, and with trust in Poland back, we can be a good supporter for Ukraine in their process of joining the European Union. And Poland has no option but to be very close to Ukraine.”
SOURCE: FRANCE24