Politics

It is clear who in Poland serves Russian interests, Polish PM writes in X post

The comment made by Polish PM Donald Tusk comes in the aftermath of a spat between Zelenskyy and Trump, the latter of which remains popular with some sections of Polish population. Photo: Klaudia Radecka/NurPhoto via Getty Images; Beata Zawrzel/NurPhoto via Getty Images
The comment made by Polish PM Donald Tusk comes in the aftermath of a spat between Zelenskyy and Trump, the latter of which remains popular with some sections of Polish population. Photo: Klaudia Radecka/NurPhoto via Getty Images; Beata Zawrzel/NurPhoto via Getty Images
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It is becoming clear who in Poland wants to serve Russian interests, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk wrote in a post on X on Saturday.

“Whether out of foolishness or calculation—it doesn’t matter. That’s why the stakes in this election are higher than ever before,” Tusk wrote in the post, that does not mention any candidates or political parties by name. 


“An independent Poland in a strong Europe or Russia. Your choice,” Tusk added. 


On Friday, following the extraordinary White House clash between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and his U.S. counterpart Donald Trump, Tusk took to X to express his support for Zelenskyy. 


He wrote: “Dear Zelenskyy, dear Ukrainian friends, you are not alone.” 


Karol Nawrocki, one of the main candidates in the upcoming presidential elections endorsed by the main opposition party, the right-wing conservative Law and Justice (PiS), criticized Tusk’s response. 


“‘Poland has done a great job’”, Nawrocki wrote on X referencing Trump’s positive comments about Poland’s “work for NATO” during the Friday meeting with Zelenskyy. 


He added: “Let’s not waste it with emotional posts from D. Tusk. Instead of fueling the conflict, let’s focus on building U.S.-Ukraine cooperation. This is a matter of our security.”  


This is not the first time Nawrocki and Tusk have clashed on X over Poland’s support for Ukraine.  


At the beginning of the year, Tusk criticized Nawrocki after he said that Ukraine did not belong in either the EU or NATO.  

The Law and Justice candidate has made the comment in the context of conducting exhumations of Polish victims of the Volhynia Massacre of 1943-44.  


The Volhynia Massacre is viewed by Poland as an act of genocide by Ukrainian nationalists and has soured relations between the two countries for decades.  


Ukraine has initially opposed Polish exhumations on its territory but has since agreed to them.  


Nawrocki’s far-right rival in the elections, Sławomir Mentzen, the leader of the nationalist Confederacy (Konfederacja) party, has made even stronger comments on Ukraine and the Volhynia Massacre.  


“Ukrainians still worship criminals responsible for the murder of 100 thousand Poles!” he said on Tuesday.  


In response, the Ukrainian foreign ministry has denounced him and Myrotvorets, a Kyiv-based NGO, has included Mentzen in a list of “enemies of Ukraine."

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