Polish PM for Der Spiegel: “Germany's Policies Have Done Tremendous Damage to Europe”

Berlin’s hesitation, its inaction, seriously calls into question the value of the alliance with Germany, Mateusz Morawiecki, Poland’s prime minister, said in an interview published in the German weekly Spiegel on Friday.

Morawiecki, responding to a comment by an interviewer that Poland has been seen as a proponent of a hard-line toward Moscow in the Ukraine war, whereas Germany was seen as a country more inclined to put the brakes on tougher measures, said: “The position taken by the Germans, especially in the initial months of the war, was very disappointing,” adding that “we are convinced that Ukraine is fighting not only for its own survival but for Europe’s freedom.”

“If Ukraine falls, it will only be a matter of time before Putin attacks the next country,” he remarked, mentioning that it was disappointing for Poles “that the Germans were so late in acknowledging their energy policy mistakes.”

“Putin uses pipelines as weapons,” he said. “For him, they are an instrument of warfare. Ukraine drove the enemy back faster than the Germans were able to make decisions.”

The prime minister noted that “Poland has supplied weapons worth well over USD 2 billion already, 300 tanks and other heavy equipment” and added that “Berlin’s hesitation, its inaction, seriously calls into question the value of the alliance with Germany.”

When asked how would the Ukraine crisis affect Germany’s role in Europe, Morawiecki replied that it was becoming clear that German energy policy was in ruins.

“The phaseout of coal and nuclear power was premature, and we don’t even need to talk about the construction of Nord Stream 1 and 2 and the associated dependence on Russia,” he said. “Germany’s policies have inflicted tremendous damage on Europe.”