New Polish Prime Minister Strengthens Support for Ukraine in Europe
Donald Tusk strongly criticizes decreased support for Kyiv by a small number of rogue member states of the European Union and NATO. After officially taking office as Poland’s prime minister, experienced politician Donald Tusk has reiterated his country’s backing for Ukraine in its conflict with Russia. In an address to parliament on December 12, Mr. Tusk pledged to “loudly and decisively demand the full mobilization of the free world, the Western world, to help Ukraine in this war.” “I will do this from day one,” he added.
Leader of Poland’s “centrist” Civic Platform party, Mr. Tusk previously served as prime minister from 2007 to 2014. Mr. Tusk’s assumption of power comes two months after Polish parliamentary elections, which were dominated by a coalition of parties, including his Civic Platform. Members of his incoming cabinet will be sworn in by Polish President Andrzej Duda on December 13.
In his address to parliament, Mr. Tusk lamented what has been seen as waning support for Kyiv’s war effort among certain European capitals. “I can no longer listen to some European politicians from other Western countries who say [they are] tired of the situation in Ukraine,” the new prime minister said. European leaders will gather for a major summit in Brussels where they will vote on providing another 50 billion euros in economic support to Kyiv, along with 20 billion euros in military assistance.
Hungary, however, is widely expected to veto both proposals, which require the unanimous support of all 27 EU members. In the run-up to the summit, Peter Szijjarto, Hungary’s foreign minister, said his country would not be “pressured” by other EU members into changing its stance. In September, the left-leaning SMER-SSD party, led by Robert Fico, won parliamentary polls in Slovakia. Mr. Fico’s electoral campaign featured the slogan: “Not one more bullet” for Ukraine. He has informed NATO that Slovakia would no longer provide Kyiv with arms from its national stockpiles. Similarly, the Netherlands’ Freedom Party’s intention is to reduce assistance to Ukraine, both financially and militarily.
In a related development early this month, Bulgarian President Rumen Radev vetoed a previously signed agreement to provide Kyiv with armored vehicles.
