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Similar rallies were held across Poland in January. A separate protest by another group of farmers and truckers blocking a key border crossing with Ukraine saw Prime Minister Donald Tusk’s government capitulate to the protesters’ demands, which included reinstating a permit system for Ukrainian truckers, adopting government subsidies for Polish corn, and a moratorium on tax hikes. Last Thursday, the European Commission proposed extending the suspension of customs duties on agricultural goods from Ukraine and Moldova through 2025. The measure was originally scheduled to expire this year. Thousands of farmers from across the bloc descended on Brussels ahead of that summit, throwing eggs, rocks, and fireworks at the EU Parliament building and setting huge piles of manure on fire.
A group of EU nations bordering Belarus has demanded that Minsk expels the Russian Wagner private military company and repatriate illegal migrants allegedly massing in the country at their borders. Speaking on Monday during a joint press conference with his Latvian, Estonian, and Lithuanian counterparts, Polish Interior Minister Mariusz Kaminski warned that the countries could shut their borders with Belarus.
“If there is a critical incident, regardless of whether it is at the Polish or Lithuanian border, we will retaliate immediately. All border crossings that have been opened so far will be closed,” Kaminski stated. He branded the Wagner Group an “extremely dangerous” yet “demoralized” force, which he claimed was “capable of anything.” Poland has repeatedly accused Belarus of facilitating illegal migration, alleging that it has deliberately been steering the flow of people from the Middle East and Africa to the EU. “This situation is escalating. For several months, we have been dealing with attempts by migrants to illegally cross [the border],” Kaminski said. According to the Polish border guard, some 19,000 migrants have tried to enter Poland from Belarus thus far this year, compared to 16,000 during all of 2022. The ultimatum to Minsk follows the death of Wagner Group leader Evgeny Prigozhin in a plane crash in Russia last week. Several other senior members of the private military company were also killed in the incident. Thus far, Minsk has not responded to the demands from Poland and the Baltic states. The Wagner Group was re-deployed to Belarus after launching a short-lived insurrection in Russia in late June. The presence of the group in Belarus has fueled the long-standing tensions between Minsk and Warsaw. Poland has claimed that the private military company is active along the border and is waging “hybrid warfare” against it. Minsk has dismissed the allegations, while Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko claimed Warsaw had “gone mad” with speculation surrounding Wagner. Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky could be “lying on purpose to get us into a war,” Fox News host Tucker Carlson declared on Wednesday night. Zelensky’s refusal to admit that a Ukrainian missile caused a fatal explosion in Poland makes him “not worth supporting,” Carlson suggested. Zelensky “was commanding the US to lead the Third World War immediately” after the blast, Carlson told his viewers. “The only problem is that it was completely and utterly wrong.”
The Ukrainian leader described the explosion, which killed two people, as a Russian attack on NATO territory and called on the West to put Russia “in its place” in response. Anonymous US intelligence officials seconded his claims in statements to the press. Moscow argued that debris at the blast site showed that it was caused by a missile from the S-300 air defense system, a piece of Soviet-era kit fielded by Ukraine. Within hours, the leadership of the US, NATO, and Poland had all publicly stated that the explosion was caused by a Ukrainian anti-air missile. Zelensky doubled down. “I have no doubt that this is not our missile,” he said in a video address. “I believe that it was a Russian missile, based on our military reports.” “That’s not only untrue,” Carlson said. “It’s a lie that could get millions of Americans killed. So you have to ask yourself, is it time to stop backing this guy? Could the risk be too high? He’s lying on purpose to get us into a war?” “Maybe he’s not worth supporting in the first place. Maybe he’s just another corrupt Eastern European strongman in a tracksuit, getting as rich as he can on American handouts.” Carlson has been a long-time critic of the US’ support for Zelensky, arguing that Ukraine is not democratic, and that intervening in its conflict with Russia is not in the US’ national security interest. Zelensky has since walked back his claims, saying on Thursday that Kiev doesn’t “know for 100%” what happened. Poland’s central bank, the National Bank of Poland (NBP), which stunned gold markets back in 2019 when it purchased 100 tonnes of gold bars in London and then promptly flew the gold back to Warsaw, has just confirmed that it now plans to buy another 100 tonnes of gold during 2022. The news was confirmed this week by Adam Glapiński, president of Poland’s central bank, in a 5 October special interview with Polish magazine ‘Strefa Biznesu’ in advance of the ‘Congress 590’ economic conference in Warsaw. As well as heading the Polish central bank, Glapiński is also an economics professor. While Poland currently holds 230 tonnes of monetary gold reserves and sits in 24 place in the planned addition of 100 tonnes of gold during 2022 would boost the country’s gold reserves to 330 tonnes and catapult Poland up to 18th place in the rankings, ahead of major gold holders such as the UK, Saudi Arabia, Austria, Spain and Thailand. 100 tonnes purchase in 2022 For those thinking ‘didn’t the Polish central bank earlier this year already mention buying 100 tonnes of gold?’, you would be correct. Back in March 2021, Adam Glapinski in an with Polish magazine Sieci said that Poland planned to buy 100 tonnes of gold over the coming years: “Over the course of a few years we want to buy at least another 100 tonnes of gold and keep it in Poland as well,” However, what has changed is that this gold buying timeline has now been compressed from a few years into 1 year, and the NBP will now execute the plan in 2022, with the NBP’s operating strategy being guided by the rule of thumb – as official reserve assets of the Polish central bank grow over time, it will continue to buy more and more gold using a target percentage of gold to total reserve assets. However, what has changed is that this gold buying timeline has now been compressed from a few years into 1 year, and the NBP will now execute the plan in 2022, with the NBP’s operating strategy being guided by the rule of thumb – as official reserve assets of the Polish central bank grow over time, it will continue to buy more and more gold using a target percentage of gold to total reserve assets. “Taking all this into account, in 2020 the NBP Management Board adopted a new reserve management strategy. Linda Kim HONG KONG, August 16 -- Liu Yifei, the actress starring in Disney's upcoming live-action "Mulan" remake, waded into the Hong Kong protest controversy on Thursday by expressing support for the city's police, who anti-government demonstrators accuse of using excessive force to quell unrest. "I support the Hong Kong police. You can all attack me now. What a shame for Hong Kong," she posted on Weibo, a Twitter-like Chinese social media platform.Immediately, people began posting #BoycottMulan on Twitter -- which is banned in China. Twitter users accused the actress of supporting police brutality, and called out the fact that she's an American citizen. "Liu is a naturalized American citizen. It must be nice. Meanwhile she pisses on people fighting for democracy," one person tweeted. Other public figures, actors and singers like Tony Leung Ka-fai and Daniel Chan have spoken out against protester violence and vandalism. Pop star Denise Ho came out in strong support of the protesters -- she even gave a speech about the protests at a United Nations meeting last month. Celebrities outside of Hong Kong and China have also chimed in. Kim Eui Sung, a South Korean actor who starred in the cult 2016 zombie apocalypse film "Train to Busan," expressed support for the protesters on Instagram, writing, "We are watching you, praying for you. #freehongkong." After being bombarded with critical and pro-Beijing comments, he posted another photo -- the infamous Tank Man shot from the Tiananmen Square massacre. Sports drinks brand Pocari Sweat was also cheered by protesters and boycotted by the opposition after the company pulled ads from a local broadcaster perceived as pro-Beijing. Even bubble tea has been caught in the mix, with a Taiwanese chain urging solidarity with protesters. And with the unrest showing no end in sight, both sides are settling in for the long haul."So disappointed," said one Twitter user of Liu's Weibo post. "Was so excited for Mulan too." WARSAW, January 8 -- Poland and Italy's right-wing rulers are to cement their "special relations" at a meeting in Warsaw, in what could make a new anti-EU league a major force in the next European Parliament (EP). The meeting, between Polish ruling party chief, Jaroslaw Kaczynski, and Italian interior minister and deputy prime minister Matteo Salvini, on Wednesday (9 January) is to discuss Poland's membership in Salvini's new EP group, according to Italian daily La Repubblica. "It's a meeting at the highest level. If [party] president Kaczynski meets another politician, it's a sign of a certain special relationship, which is how we're treating it," Polish foreign minister Jacek Czaputowicz also told Polish radio station RMF on Saturday. "We have to discuss matters related to the European Parliament," Czaputowicz added. Jacek Sasin, an MP from Kaczynski's ruling Law and Justice (PiS) party, said it was "uncertain" whether the meeting would "deliver a certain objective, an agreement". But Salvini and Kaczynski would "exchange ideas ... on how the European Union should function", he said. "There are definitely different points of view between us and Mr Matteo Salvini ... but that doesn't mean we don't have some ideas in common on how the [European] project should be modified," he added. Kaczynski's party currently sits in the right-wing European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR) group, which has 73 deputies. But the ECR is likely to collapse when its British Conservative party members leave after Brexit, leaving PiS homeless in Brussels. The main group, the centre-right European People's Party (EPP), already has a Kaczynski-type member, Hungary's nationalist leader Viktor Orban, whom it has kept in its club to try to contain him. But the EPP is also home to Poland's main opposition party, the Civic Platform, ruling out PiS membership. That leaves the new Salvini-led group as an option, whether to gain power in the EP, or to gain leverage in Warsaw's fight against EU sanctions on PiS' abuse of rule of law at home. "The message [of Wednesday's meeting] is: The Polish government is shifting its position to the anti-European fringe," Slawomir Nitras, a Civic Platform MP, said. "It [the Polish government] is not just sceptical [of the EU], it's joining up with forces who are thinking of how to dismantle the European Union," he added. "If he [Salvini] ... persuades Law and Justice to join, it will be one of the largest groups in the next European Parliament," Kazimierz Marcinkiewicz, a former Polish prime minister who left PiS, also said. Salvini has already convinced French and Dutch far-right parties, the National Rally (formerly known as National Front) and the Party for Freedom, to join. If PiS, as well as Austria's far-right Freedom Party, come on board, it could get 140 MEPs or so, making it the third largest in the EP. If Salvini becomes Italian prime minister, as many expect due to his party's surge in polls, and if PiS wins Polish elections this year, then the new group would also have two leaders from the G6, or group of six largest EU states. WARSAW, December 24 -- Winter is back in Poland, accompanied by smog—and renewed concern about its impact on people’s health. Poland has some of the worst air quality in Europe, with 33 of the continent’s 50 most polluted cities, according to a World Health Organization (WHO) report last year. This is highlighted by the European Air Quality Index launched in November by the European Environment Agency (EEA) and the European Commission, a map that enables users to find out whether the air they are breathing is safe in real time. The situation is worst in southern Poland, where towns frequently fall into the index’s “very poor” category for high levels of particulate matter PM2.5 and PM10, two key pollutants. The main culprit: the coal used to heat people’s houses. At the EU level, the poor air quality in cities across Europe is causing concern. In a recent statement, EU Environment Commissioner Karmenu Vella called air pollution an “invisible killer”. In Europe, exposure to particulate matter decreases the life expectancy of every person by an average of almost one year, amid higher risk of cardiovascular and respiratory diseases, and lung cancer, according to the WHO. WARSAW, December 6 -- Slovakia’s Defense Minister Peter Gajdos has signed three separate, preliminary Letters of Offer and Acceptance (LOAs) with the United States to acquire 14 F-16 Block 70/72 fighters for the Slovak air force. But it was subsequently revealed that the ministry failed to obtain the rest of the government’s approval for the decision. Under the signed agreements, the aircraft are to be acquired the by the end of 2023 under a program estimated to be worth about €1.6 billion (US $1.8 billion). The fighters are to replace Slovakia’s Soviet-designed Mikoyan MiG-29 jets. “The final decision on the signing of the agreement on the replacement of the [Slovak] Air Forceʼs fighter jet fleet falls fully within the competence of the [Slovak] government. The MoD has never cast any doubt whatsoever on this proposition,” the ministry said in a Dec. 1 statement. Representatives of Slovakia’s opposition party Ordinary People (OĽaNO) have called on the country’s Prime Minister Peter Pellegrini to dismiss Gajdos, accusing the minister of pursuing the acquisition in a disorganized manner and without adequate public supervision. “With such major spending, it is important to make procurements perfectly prepared and under public control,” Veronika Remisova, a member of parliament for the OĽaNO party, said on Facebook Dec. 4. |
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