The new Polish Prime Minister, Donald Tusk, promised the return of “mutual trust” between his country and the institutions of the European Union, following the accession to power of a pro-European coalition government, on Friday 15 December in Brussels, during a meeting with the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, on the fringes of the European Council.
This return of trust should make it possible to gradually resolve open conflicts, particularly on the issue of respect for the rule of law and fundamental European values. “We remember that the rule of law is very important. It is about our place in Europe, our common values,” said Mr Tusk. According to him, the Eurosceptic positions of the previous sovereignist government had been taken without the consent of the Polish people or the Polish judiciary.
EPPO. Among the first decisions taken by the Tusk government is the request to join the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO). “It’s a signal that we’re also taking issues of rule of law very seriously when it comes to the proper use of EU funds,” said the former President of the European Council.
Established in 2021 (see EUROPE 12729/11), EPPO is responsible for investigating offences against the EU’s financial interests. To date, 22 of the 27 Member States are taking part. Poland, along with Hungary and Sweden, had previously chosen not to join this body. Denmark and Ireland, for their part, benefit from an option not to participate in the EU’s Area of Freedom, Security and Justice.
The President of the Commission praised the “personal commitment and European experience” of Mr Tusk, whose “inestimable” value will help the EU to face up to the many current challenges. She welcomed the Prime Minister’s “determination” to tackle “the fears raised in recent years by the EU Court of Justice and the Commission”.
RRF. On Friday, the European Commission announced that the Polish authorities had sent it Poland’s first payment request under its revised post-Covid-19 recovery plan, now worth €59.8 billion, including €34.5 billion in loans (see EUROPE 13297/17).
This request, a positive assessment of which would release a tranche of €6.3 billion, is linked to a series of preconditions (37 milestones and a target covering certain investments and reforms), including measures to strengthen the independence of the judiciary and the use of the ‘Arachne’ IT system to monitor the use of European funds.
The EU institution points out that no payment will be made until the main preconditions (‘super milestones’) agreed when the plan was initially adopted by the EU Council in June 2022 (see EUROPE 12974/6) have been met. On Friday, however, the Commission indicated that it was working to pay out €5 billion in pre-financing under the ‘REPowerEU’ chapter of the revised Polish plan before the end of 2023.
It is “a Christmas present” that will enable us to strengthen our “energy sovereignty”, according to Mr Tusk. Mrs von der Leyen noted that Warsaw and the Commission shared the objective of making up for “lost time” in implementing the recovery plan in Poland, as the 2026 deadline drew closer.
See the Commission’s positive assessment of the revised Polish plan: https://aeur.eu/f/9nk (Original version in French by Mathieu Bion with Nithya Paquiry)