“This is essentially the same game – to pretend, pretend, and pretend once again,” said the leader of Law and Justice (PiS), Jarosław Kaczyński, referring to the government’s announcement that it would challenge the agreement with Mercosur countries before the Court of Justice of the European Union.
Government representatives announced on Friday that they would file a complaint against the agreement concluded between the European Union and Mercosur countries (Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, Bolivia, Uruguay) with the CJEU. “We believe that food security, consumer safety, and the protection of our domestic market are at risk,” stated Deputy Prime Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz.
The decision has sparked numerous comments from opposition representatives, who argue that the government is reacting far too late and that its actions are in fact being forced by the president and farmers.
“It is clearly visible”
On Saturday, journalists asked the leader of Law and Justice (PiS), Jarosław Kaczyński, about the matter. He suggested that the challenge would be only partial and – in his view – merely symbolic.
“This is essentially the same game – to pretend, pretend, and pretend once again. Apparently – although I don’t know whether it is true – Tusk said not long ago: “we must have ‘Kaczyism’ without Kaczyński.” So this is exactly that ‘Kaczyism’ without Kaczyński – creating various appearances,” he said.
The PiS leader added that even if the Prime Minister did not use those exact words, “it is clearly visible that they are pretending, pretending, and pretending once again, and quite simply telling unbelievable lies.”
“They have been lying since 2015. Since Tusk’s speech in June 2015 at Torwar. That is when this war began, and it is entirely the fault of that side. Any attempt to divide responsibility here is completely unfounded,” he stated.
They criticized the president’s appeal
On April 7, the President of Poland, Karol Nawrocki, sent a letter to Donald Tusk demanding the immediate filing of a complaint against the European Union’s agreement with Mercosur countries to the Court of Justice of the European Union.
“The government promised this. To this day, it has not fulfilled that promise. The countryside cannot wait any longer. I am attaching a ready draft of such a complaint to the letter. Everything is prepared. All that is needed is to act. All avenues and possibilities must be used to stop the Mercosur agreement,” the president said at the time.
The ruling majority responded critically to this appeal.
Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz stated at the time that the president was “once again late”, and that “thanks to PSL Members of the European Parliament, the agreement with Mercosur countries has already been referred to the CJEU.”
The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Radosław Sikorski, pointed out that “the president has no constitutional powers to conduct European policy.”
At the end of March, Prime Minister Donald Tusk indicated that the government did not yet plan to file a complaint with the CJEU regarding the Mercosur agreement. He noted that a complaint had already been submitted at the request of the European Parliament.
In mid-March, the Sejm of the Republic of Poland adopted a resolution calling on the government to file a complaint with the CJEU on behalf of Poland, independently of the complaint submitted by the European Parliament. The Sejm emphasized that Member States may bring an action for annulment of a European Union act, alleging lack of competence, infringement of essential procedural requirements, violation of the Treaties or any legal rule relating to their application, or misuse of powers.
