The proposal for a joint meeting of governments on the Polish-Ukrainian border on February 24 is an attempt by Volodymyr Zelensky to improve his PR at Poland’s expense, said Krzysztof Bosak (Confederation), Deputy Speaker of the Sejm on Thursday. He stressed that he should pay Poland with concessions for such a favor.
- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky appealed to Prime Minister Donald Tusk for a meeting of the governments of the two countries on their common border, which would take place before Saturday’s second anniversary of Russia’s invasion of his country.
- Zelensky also asked President Andrzej Duda to support this dialogue.
– The meeting of two governments on the border is a purely theatrical gesture, because real talks are conducted at the working level and in the capitals of their respective countries. I know that they took place in Warsaw and Kiev, said Krzysztof Bosak, deputy speaker of the Sejm, on Thursday on Wnet radio.
What President Zelensky is asking for is a favor for him so that he can show himself as a tough negotiator solving his country’s problems. He should pay Poland for such a favor with concessions, said Bosak.
He said that “Prime Minister Tusk should make his presence at the border dependent on what is happening at the working level.”
– If an agreement favorable to Poland emerged during these talks, we should be included in it, but if we are ignored there and nothing happens, the President of Ukraine’s proposal should be treated as an attempt by Volodymyr Zelensky to improve his PR at Poland’s expense, so we should not give in him this favor – said Bosak.
When asked whether he saw Prime Minister Tusk’s assertiveness towards Ukraine, the Confederation leader said he “didn’t see it for now.”
– This results from the lack of assertiveness towards Brussels – he added.
To play hardball with Kiev, it would be necessary to do what the Confederation proposed on Wednesday, i.e. issue a regulation extending the embargo on products entering Poland. The problem is that such a regulation would put us on a collision course not only with Kiev, but also with Brussels, said Bosak.
He emphasized that “the most important thing for Poland is maintaining food sovereignty, maintaining its own farms and food production.” – We have it included in the Constitution of the Republic of Poland because it is of a strategic nature – noted the leader of the Confederation.
He assessed that “the exports that currently go from Poland to Ukraine result from the war taking place in this country.” – If there is peace there, Ukraine will start producing large amounts of food again and Poland’s export advantage may disappear – said Bosak.
He pointed out that “there are many recipients of Polish food in the world.” – Our food is good, attractive and we can export it to all directions, so it is not profitable for us to close our agriculture and destroy its economic foundations in the name of a temporary advantage in the export surplus to Ukraine – said Bosak.
Improving the trade balance is a very good goal, but it is not above food sovereignty and agricultural market stability, said the leader of the Confederation.
