– Each of my interlocutors showed understanding for Poland's situation – said Prime Minister Donald Tusk during the press conference at the end of the European Council summit. The head of the Polish government emphasized that “it is crucial to point out Poland in the context of hybrid war and the pressure caused by Russia and Belarus.”
One of the main topics of Thursday's European Council meeting was the issue of migration. The reason is the growing number of people coming to Europe, as well as the threat of instrumental use of migrants by Russia and Belarus.
READ MORE: A “turnaround” in migration policy and “new, extraordinary” measures. What was happening at the top
Prime minister Donald Tusk during the press conference he said that “the entire debate focused on the issue of migration.” – Everyone emphasized that this is the first such debate: without pretense, without hypocrisy and with full awareness of how important this issue is – he said.
– These solutions are not simple. I had the opportunity to talk to the Prime Minister early in the morning Swedenthere is full understanding. Each of my interlocutors showed understanding of Poland's situation. Everyone understood that this extraordinary situation requires appropriate methods of action, the Prime Minister pointed out.
Donald Tusk emphasized that “it is crucial to point to Poland in the context of hybrid war and the pressure caused by Russia and Belarus.” – This is an exceptional situation and it requires appropriate actions to counteract it – he added.
Tusk: The Polish position has become mainstream
– We need to change the attitude, which until now has been based on an understandable, especially historically, principle, which was expressed in the Geneva Convention, in European treaties and resulted from the experience of World War II, and later communism, the Iron Curtain and the Cold War – said Tusk .
Answering a question about the reasons for the change in perspective on the problem of illegal migration, he explained that it was “the awareness that everything has changed, the numbers are overwhelming.” – None of the traditional solutions bring anything. It turned out that what is a Polish position has become mainstream. Everyone realizes that the migration pact was not a response appropriate to the importance of the problem, he said.
The head of the Polish government pointed out that “for the first time at the European Council, the overwhelming majority of votes seemed to be written 'in Polish'.” – The task of the European Union and future legislative changes and provisions is to effectively prevent illegal migration – he added.
When asked about the continuation of the discussion on the problem of illegal migration, he said: – There are prospects for outsourcing initiatives, sending people back to a third country. – We will not relocate, because this is not a solution to the problem. Everyone has started to understand that the protection of external borders must be be a top priority for all countries, he added.
Main photo source: Leszek Szymański/PAP/EPA