In response to the opposition’s allegations that the government agreed to accelerate the implementation of the migration pact at an informal meeting of the EU Council in Warsaw last week, Polish Interior Minister Tomasz Siemoniak said that “there was no talk of any acceleration or lack of acceleration.”
The minister added that “no such topic was the main thread of discussion,” reports Business Insider.
However, the European Commission had noted that Poland is “in a special situation” in a December 2024 communiqué issued regarding the migratory pressure it faces on its borders with Russia and Belarus. In other words, Poland should be exempt from having to take in relocated migrants and thus face zero financial penalties for not taking them in.
When asked about this special status, EU commission spokesman Markus Lammert told press that “EU law is binding on the member states and the migration pact, as a result of its entry into force, is binding law.” However, he also noted the December communiqué, adding that the pact can be flexible towards countries such as Poland that are dealing with the weaponized migration implemented by both Russia and Belarus.
The document establishes a framework for actions that should prevent Russia and Belarus from engaging in such practices, including enabling EU countries to adopt exceptional measures, such as suspending the right to asylum and strengthening their ability to defend the EU’s borders.
Prime Minister Donald Tusk has reiterated that Poland will not implement the migration pact or any other provision that would lead to Poland forcibly accepting migrants from other European countries.
However, not everybody believes Tusk, with Professor Tomasz Gosse telling Do Rzeczy that the EU migration pact will eventually mean migrant quotas for Poland, with at least 10,000 coming to the country every year and much more in an “emergency” situation.