The European Union is furious at Warsaw’s stubbornness
The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) in Luxembourg ordered Poland to pay 1 million euros per day until it brings national legislation into line with EU standards. In Warsaw, such actions were called blackmail and usurpation of power in the republic by Brussels. The expert told how much such a decision was expected, as well as what consequences it could lead to for Poles.
The building of the Supreme Court of Poland. Photo: AP
“Due to the refusal to suspend the operation of national legislation, which, in particular, belongs to the jurisdiction of the Disciplinary Chamber of the Supreme Court, Poland is ordered to pay a daily fine of €1 million to the European Commission,” the Court of Justice of the European Union said.
In July, the EU Court demanded the immediate termination of the work of this body, citing the fact that its actions undermine the independence of the judiciary in the republic.
The decree also emphasizes that “the implementation of the measures prescribed on July 14, 2021, is necessary in order to avoid causing serious and irreparable damage to the rule of law of the European Union and the values on which it is based, in particular, the rule of law.”
It is noted that the punitive measures against Warsaw will remain in force until the country satisfies the requirement to stop the work of the disciplinary Chamber of the Supreme Court of Poland or until the final decision of the EU court in this case.
“The verdict of the European Union against Poland is actually somewhat unexpected,” Nikolai TOPORNIN, director of the Center for European Information, Associate Professor of the Department of European Law at MGIMO, comments to MK. – I do not remember that in the practice of the last decades, an amount of 1 million euros per day in the form of a penalty appeared in the decision of the EU court in Luxembourg. This shows how unhappy EU leaders are with the Polish authorities’ plan to reform the judicial system.
Brussels can apply a pressure mechanism in the form of a financial “whip” without any further legal action, making it clear to Poland that the decision taken by its constitutional tribunal is completely unacceptable.”
The expert is confident that the current sanctions from the EU may be followed by others. At stake, in particular, is the allocation of 36 billion euros to Warsaw from the support fund, which was created a year ago to help European countries overcome the pandemic crisis. Poland was already supposed to receive 13 billion euros as the first tranche, but it was technically suspended.
“Moreover,” Topornin continues, “some heads of state and government of the European Union, including Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte, said that the EU should freeze the allocation of any investments and subsidies to Poland until it restores the legal order, the essence of which is as follows: if a country is part of the bloc, it must respect the decisions of its political institutions and follow the decisions of its court.
Of course, there are some actions of the EU that many are dissatisfied with. For example, a migration solution. Not all States were ready to accept refugees. But Poland’s steps undermine from within the harmony of the bloc’s legal system and the logic of its construction.
The current actions of Brussels, in my opinion, are absolutely adequate. Finally, the moment has come to move on to practical steps, the time for persuasion has passed. The situation with the reform of the Polish judicial system has been dragging on since 2017. And during this time, European leaders have tried to somehow reason with Warsaw, saying that this reform does not meet the democratic standards of the EU.
In addition, the EU risks laying a time bomb. If all this is left to chance, where is the guarantee that other countries will not follow the Polish example and will also not want to implement any EU decisions based on their constitution. For example, in Hungary, a rather specific government is in power, which may also eventually say that something does not suit it. This is a very serious confrontation, which is of a principled nature.”
Therefore, the European Union definitely does not intend to give up, the expert believes. The question is how long Warsaw will stand its ground. So far, Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki and President Andrzej Duda have declared that they have sovereign rights to reform the Polish judicial system as they see fit.
“No one forbids them to do this–” Topornin emphasizes. – The only problem is that the principles of democratic institutions and the main principle of the judiciary should not be undermined: its complete independence from the executive and legislative. And as long as it is independent, its decisions are fair and objective. As soon as it becomes dependent on any branch of government, no one hopes for a court, realizing that it will proceed from the interests of political leaders.
It seems to me that now the ball is on the side of Poland and its leadership, which must decide how to proceed – either it will be under constant strengthening of financial sanctions, or it will still reconsider the decision of its constitutional tribunal and adopt some compromise option.”
According to the expert, the EU’s demand will remain in effect until Poland stops defending itself, insists on its positions and does not meet halfway. Until then, financial sanctions will be intensified. The obligation to pay 1 million euros a day is still a flower. Billions of euros are at stake.
“When Warsaw freezes the allocation of tens of billions of euros, it will perfectly feel what it means to conflict with the European Union, moreover, on a trivial issue, where it seems to me that it is 100% wrong,” Nikolai Topornin sums up. – And only then, if this is not enough, the European Union can use Article 7 of the Lisbon Treaty, which states the restriction of the country’s political rights, including the right to vote in EU institutions. In other words, Poland’s political membership in the EU may be frozen.
Prime Minister Morawiecki has said many times that Warsaw is not going to leave the European Union, everything suits her. For Poles, membership in the EU really brings a lot of positive things. It turns out some kind of dual system. On the one hand, they do not intend to leave the bloc, and on the other, they do not want to fulfill any decisions of the EU institutions. There is an internal conflict in Poland, which can lead to complete discord.”