The EU opened a case on Polandʼs violation of European legislation. This concerns the investigation of Russian influence in the country
- Author:
- Liza Brovko
- Date:
Reuters / «Бабель»
The Board of Commissioners of the European Union initiated a case about Polandʼs violation of European legislation due to the creation of a commission in the country to study the influence of the Russian Federation, which, according to the EU, may threaten election abuse.
RFM24 writes about it.
The European Commission has already criticized the Polish law and said it will take decisive action. An official letter will now be sent to the Polish authorities, which will be the first step in a three-stage procedure for initiating a case, which may end with a lawsuit before the Court of Justice of the European Union.
Polish authorities are given a few weeks to respond to the letter due to the urgency of the matter. If it does not do this, the European Commission will proceed to the next stage — financial sanctions.
In general, the European Commission concluded that the act establishing a commission to study Russian influence violates EU law.
- The law provides for the creation of a state commission to investigate Russian influence in Poland. The commission will have the powers of a prosecutor and a judge. It will check the activities of public officials and members of the countryʼs top management from 2007 to 2022 and will be able to punish them. Experts say that this law can be used to put pressure on the opposition before the parliamentary elections in the fall of 2023. The current Polish government accuses the leader of the opposition "Citizensʼ Coalition" and former Prime Minister Donald Tusk of making gas deals beneficial to Russia during his reign.
- The US State Department and the European Commission have expressed concern that the Polish law may effectively bar opposition figures from public office.
- Polandʼs President Andrzej Duda has proposed amendments to the countryʼs Russian influence law, drawing criticism from the European Union and the United States over the alleged threat of election fraud.