Polish media outlets reported that during his ongoing trip to the US, Nawrocki was available for private meetings as part of a paid sponsorship package. Karol Nawrocki, Poland’s president, has dismissed media reports that private meetings were made available with him for a price, saying he alone decides whom to meet with and when. Newsweek Polska and private broadcaster Radio Zet reported on Sunday that sponsorship deals being offered for a conference in New York on Monday involved promises of access to President Nawrocki. The head of state is currently in New York for the 81st UN General Assembly, which runs until September 28. Sponsorship packages were reportedly being offered by the Center for Development Strategies, a foundation organizing the invite-only Polish-American Economic Summit with the cooperation of Nawrocki’s office. The top-tier package, which came with a price tag of $100,000, included a meeting with the Polish head of state, a source reportedly told the outlets. ‘I alone decide’ But Nawrocki dismissed the reports when asked about them by journalists on Monday. “It seems to me that it’s obvious to the Polish public that no one has to pay to meet the president,” he said. The Polish head of state went on to say no foundations, associations, or even his own aides, decide on his schedule of appointments. “I alone decide my calendar, and I alone decide whom to meet and when,” Nawrocki said. “The aim of my meetings is the interest of Poland and Poles.” Attending the economic summit which had earlier hit the headlines, Nawrocki gave a speech in which he hailed Poland’s progress in becoming a tech hub. “Poland’s ambition is to be a country of high-tech and innovation, and the data shows that it’s not just an aspiration,” he said. “The process of attaining that status is already ongoing.” Nawrocki added that arms procurements, energy contracts and technological cooperation have already built a firm foundation for Poland to achieve its goals. “The next step is to increase the share of Polish enterprises in the production, development and servicing of these projects, rather than just in their financing,” he said. Poland has the potential to become “one of the most important places connecting American capital and technology with the economic potential of the whole of Europe.”
