Conservative (PiS) MP Marcin Przydacz interviewed by portal wPolityce.pl has accused Donald Tusk of being disingenuous in relation to the issue of trade with Ukraine because Tusk’s party continues to support duty-free trade with Ukraine in the European Parliament.
On Thursday, the European Parliament’s Committee on International Trade, with the votes of the EPP, extended duty-free trade with Ukraine and Moldova. The liberalization of trade was supported by MEPs from the current ruling coalition in Poland.
Przydacz said that Tusk “has gone around boasting that he has great leverage in Europe, but in reality the situation is different and Tusk is unable to stop the continuation of the open borders policy towards Ukrainian products.”
This is two-faced and only works because of the media coverage, which accentuates what Tusk says rather than what he and his party actually do, said Przydacz.
The PiS MP, who served in the last PiS government as deputy foreign minister, suggests that Tusk is not prepared to block free trade with Ukraine in Brussels and refuses to impose an embargo at the border too. Przydacz contends that for Tusk, his ties with the EPP and his position within it are more important than protecting the interests of Polish farmers.
He also feels that the left-liberal government is trying to pacify demonstrating farmers by pretending to agree with their objectives. However, farmers have sensed that this is false and are continuing the protests against both Brussels and the current government. According to opinion polls, over 70 percent of Poles support the farmers’ protests, and this is why the pro-government media are now attempting to discredit the farmers.
That, argues Przydacz, is why the police were ordered to get tough with protesters in Warsaw on Wednesday. It was done to make the protesters look violent and irresponsible. However, in reality, it is the provocations that have been forced on the police which are irresponsible and divisive.
