"A compromise between Polexit and total submission": why Poland's ruling party approved a resolution against leaving the EU

The Political Council of Poland's ruling Law and Justice Party (PiS) approved a resolution excluding the country's withdrawal from the European Union (Polexit).

The press secretary of the party Anita Chervinskaya told reporters about it.

“Due to the fact that lately there has been false information about the position of PiS on the question of Poland's belonging to the EU, we decided to answer this question with the help of a resolution,” said Czerwińska.

According to her, in the resolution entitled “On Poland's belonging to the European Union and the sovereignty of the Polish Republic” “Polexit is excluded”.

“We unambiguously associate the future of Poland with membership in the European Union, but this does not mean that we should agree to a progressive, non-negotiated process of limiting the sovereignty of the member states,” the PiS spokeswoman explained.

She added that the party wants Poland "to be a member of the European Union and remain a sovereign state."

At the same time, Chervinskaya stressed that the approved resolution also states that "the EU needs deep changes."

“We are categorically against any attempts to undermine the supremacy of the constitutions of nation states, which should remain sovereign in Europe, restrictions on their exclusive powers in a number of areas prescribed in European treaties, including the judicial system, which is especially important today.

We also resolutely oppose tendencies that call into question the state of equality of states, ”the text of the document emphasizes.

"Needs Union subsidies"

As noted by Vadim Trukhachev, a lecturer at the Department of Foreign Regional Studies and Foreign Policy at the Historical and Archival Institute of the Russian State Humanitarian University, Vadim Trukhachev, the new resolution of the ruling party in Poland is a kind of "compromise between Polexit and complete subordination" to Brussels.

“Despite regular statements that Poland should be independent and not so dependent on the EU, there has never been a radical formulation of the issue of leaving the union by the ruling party.

By its resolution, this political force shows that it does not want Poland to leave the EU, because the country is not rich and needs subsidies from the union.

But, on the other hand, the party wants to demonstrate that it will no longer allow Brussels to attack the country's sovereignty, ”the analyst said in a conversation with RT.

According to Leonid Vardomsky, head of the Center for Post-Soviet Studies at the Institute of Economics of the Russian Academy of Sciences, the adoption of a resolution that excludes the possibility of Polexit is a sign that official Warsaw is seriously afraid that the contradictions between Poland and the EU related to national sovereignty may lead to the country's withdrawal from the European Union.

• Symbols of the Law and Justice Party (PiS)

• Reuters

• © Kacper Pempel

“The Polish authorities are probably afraid that the radical forces in the country may rouse this issue, and the majority of the population will support the exit from the EU.

To prevent such inclinations and such ideas from developing, the ruling party, which is nationalist and always butts with the EU, nevertheless adopted a corresponding document.

On the other hand, Warsaw is trying to defend its sovereignty, ”the expert said in an interview with RT.

Cons of EU membership

It is worth noting that recently in Poland, discussions have intensified on Polexit - the country's possible exit from the European Union.

According to a poll conducted by the sociological center IBRiS for the Polish newspaper Rzeczpospolita from September 10 to 11, 33% of respondents consider the main disadvantage of Poland's EU membership that the countries of the union are not treated equally.

Another 25% of respondents call the main disadvantage of the "imposition" of laws by the European Union, which the Polish side must comply with.

9% of respondents consider the biggest problem of Poland's presence in the EU is the emigration of the country's population to other European states.

In general, 42% of respondents indicated that the advantages of EU membership clearly outweigh the disadvantages, another 26% believe that there are more advantages than disadvantages.

Experts remind that talks in Poland about Polexit intensified after the EU threatened to deprive a number of Polish regions in the south and east of the country in early September, where regional parliaments approved documents aimed at combating the so-called “LGBT ideology”.

She is viewed by the local authorities as a threat to the traditional family in Poland.

As Leonid Vardomsky noted, Warsaw does not like the fact that its sovereign decisions are challenged by Brussels.

“And how to combine European values ​​with national sovereignty is a big question for Warsaw.

Poland is still a Catholic country, not everyone likes same-sex marriage and aspects related to homosexuality and other things that Brussels imposes.

This is not the first incident when the EU encroaches on the independent decisions of the Polish authorities, ”the analyst said.

Vadim Trukhachev recalled that initially talks about Poland's exit from the EU began after the EU imposed restrictions on Warsaw due to the judicial reform being carried out by the Polish authorities.

“It contradicts the principle of separation of powers, as it seems to Brussels.

And a number of tough Eurosceptics in Poland perceived this as an attack on the country's sovereignty, they started talking about Polexit seriously, ”Trukhachev said.

Vardomsky, in turn, recalled that Hungary was also subjected to a similar "punishment for obstinacy", whose parliament in June passed a law prohibiting the display and dissemination of materials about homosexuality and gender reassignment in schools.

The European Union has postponed the approval of the Hungarian economic recovery plan after the pandemic, which means that the country will not yet get access to the funds of a special fund in the amount of € 7.2 billion.

• European Parliament building

• AFP

• © YVES HERMAN / POOL

It is noteworthy that in Hungary, ideas about Huxit - Hungary's exit from the European Union - are also becoming more and more popular.

So, in August, the Hungarian pro-government newspaper Magyar Nemzet published a commentary in which the political scientist spoke in favor of Hungary's withdrawal from the EU.

The topic caused a heated discussion in society.

"Tired of the directives of Brussels"

In addition to Poland and Hungary, they also often talk about leaving the EU in Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, France and other EU countries.

As explained by Vardomsky, all these states are united by the fact that they are "tired of the directives of Brussels."

“In fact, the EU member states have little left of freedom.

The European Commission suppresses them with its guidelines and requirements.

In general, the positions of Eurosceptics have strengthened in Europe, ”the analyst said.

According to Vardomsky, the conflict of integration and national interests, which manifests itself in a number of EU countries, but most acutely in Poland and Hungary, also influences the intensification of talks about leaving the EU.

“A number of other EU countries are showing dissatisfaction with centralization.

Integration requires all the time some kind of replenishment and more and more resources of the countries of association, and national states require the preservation of sovereignty, ”the expert said.

Another reason why ideas about leaving the EU are increasingly heard in Europe is the conflict between Eastern and Western Europe, which is now manifesting itself more and more, Vardomsky believes.

“This is happening because the economic lag of the eastern countries from the European core persists and even increases, especially against the backdrop of the coronavirus pandemic.

In addition, there are big differences in the value orientations of the EU countries, a conflict between traditional values ​​and new ultra-liberal ones, ”the analyst said.

At the same time, experts agree that despite talks about leaving the EU, the collapse of the European Union will not happen in the foreseeable future.

“There will be movement towards liberalization of relations between the European Commission and the participating countries. At some stage, they will probably fix what countries should decide for themselves and what European structures should be responsible for. The European Union needs a clearer division of functions between the European center and the countries. This is not the case yet. While there is a European bureaucracy. She is interested in centralizing functions, making most decisions. And this collides with the national interests of a number of EU countries, ”concluded Vardomsky.