President Karol Nawrocki, after listening to the address by Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski outlining the objectives of Polish diplomacy for 2026, commented on it during a press conference. He began with positive remarks but also pointed out what he believed was missing.
At a press conference in the Sejm immediately after hearing the so-called exposé by the head of Polish diplomacy, Nawrocki referred to the words delivered in the plenary chamber.
He started with several positives. “It is good news for Polish women and men – for the entire Republic – that on fundamental and strategic matters the policy of the President of the Republic and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is on the same page,” the president said, referring to Sikorski’s clear identification of the threat posed by the Russian Federation.
He added that this “kind of compatibility between the Presidential Palace and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, or the government side, also applies to the perception of Poland’s great opportunity, which will materialize later this year during the G20 meeting. We must make every effort to ensure that Poland’s presence in the G20 becomes permanent.”
There were also critical remarks.
“I am pleased that Minister Sikorski acknowledged that Washington, the United States, and NATO are Poland’s strategic commitments; that Washington is our strategic partner. I take care of Polish-American relations, which concern the economy, development, and above all security,” Nawrocki admitted.
He also addressed issues he felt were absent from the speech. “I missed somewhat greater assertiveness toward the European Commission in Minister Sikorski’s address. I would like to see stronger support from the government in reforming its operations. There is no doubt that Poland is and will remain in the EU. Minister Sikorski constructed the problem of Polexit and dissected it into its component parts – but such a problem does not exist today,” the president stressed.
Nawrocki criticized Sikorski for the considerable amount of time devoted in the speech to allegations of Poland’s potential withdrawal from the European Union, describing it as an invented problem. He also criticized the “dissecting it into its component parts” with laboratory precision.
He further pointed out the lack of broader references to regional formats in which Poland plays a leading role, such as the Three Seas Initiative. “I noted with disappointment that Minister Sikorski did not refer to my proposal, which I submitted to the President of Germany, concerning the payment of reparations. If Germany began paying reparations – even in equipment alone – perhaps today we would not have to discuss the SAFE program, because military matters would be covered by what Germany is obliged to pay,” the president recalled.