New Polish PM’s first trip abroad

Polish PM Ewa Kopacz and EP President Martin Schulz in Brussels, 06.10.2014 Photo: PAP/Radek Pietruszka

As John Beauchamp reports, Ewa Kopacz met with the head of the European Parliament Martin Schulz to discuss Poland’s role in the EU and the situation in Ukraine, and also discussed climate policy with the outgoing president of the European Council, Herman Van Rompuy, ahead of a European Council summit on 23 October.

Marking her debut in Brussels, Kopacz said that she and Schulz “spoke about the perspectives for continuing cooperation for years to come between the Polish government and the European Parliament.”

EU Commissioner-designate for High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Federica Mogherini during a hearing by the Committee on Foreign Affairs at the European Parliament in Brussels, 06.10.2014. Photo: PAP/EPA/JULIEN WARNAND

The meetings coincided with an EP hearing with the EU’s new foreign policy chief, Federica Mogherini, who suggested on Monday that the European Union must provide political support in order to resolve the conflict in Ukraine. Mogherini’s comments came before she takes up her new post on 1 November.

“Russia might not be a partner at the moment […] still, it is a strategic country in the world and it’s a neighbour for Ukraine,” Mogherini said.

What role might Poland play in this political support? We speak to Joe Litobarski, editor of Debating Europe, an online discussion platform based in Brussels, on Poland’s driving force in terms of eastern policy.

“I think that the appointment of Donald Tusk [...] sends a very clear message that Poland really is a central player within the EU,” Litobarski says.