Tusk: Europe is lucky to be led by Poland in a difficult historical moment – World – News

On Friday, Poland ceremonially started its presidency in the Council of the EU. Europe is lucky that Poland will hold the presidency at a difficult historical moment, Prime Minister Donald Tusk announced at a gala dinner in Warsaw’s Grand Theater – National Opera.

The new President of the European Council, António Costa, also gave a speech, who spoke about a common vision based on the same values, principles and strategic goals. The Poles took over the leadership of the European Union on January 1 after the Hungarians.

“Europe, you are lucky that in this very difficult historical moment it will be Poland who will be in charge of the (EU) presidency, because we in Poland know very well that we must find strength, hope and faith in our own strength, we must again to discover the meaning of freedom and what Europe is,” said the head of the Polish government, according to the Gazeta server. In addition, he declared that if Europe is powerless, it will not survive.

“Our common vision for Europe is based on the same values, the same principles, the same strategic purpose: strengthening the unity of the member states, the effectiveness of the European institutions, the prosperity of the European citizens,” said Costa, who described Poland and its EU membership as the cornerstone of European defense. .

“In fact, there is no better time for Polish leadership in the EU… Poland is a source of resilience at a time when authoritarianism and populism threaten our values,” added Costa, who recalled that the European Union was born as a peace project after World War II. “We need to strengthen our security to ensure peace in Europe. Therefore, Ukraine must remain our highest priority. We must continue to stand by Ukraine this year,” he said.

In its six-month presidency, Poland wants to focus mainly on EU security in all dimensions, i.e. external, internal, informational, economic, energy, food, and health. It is expected that especially in the events surrounding Ukraine, Warsaw, which is a great ally of Kyiv, could play a significant role. In February, three years will pass since the beginning of the Russian aggression, and the plan is to adopt the sixteenth package of EU sanctions at this time, which should be very harsh towards Moscow and significantly affect Russia.