President Karol Nawrocki, speaking during a meeting in Chmielnik, addressed the reasons behind his veto of the SAFE bill.
“Taking on obligations until 2070, also on behalf of these wonderful children and young people standing here with us, is too serious a commitment to sign such a loan,” the president said.
President Nawrocki also appealed to Sejm Marshal Włodzimierz Czarzasty to unblock the president’s legislative initiatives, noting that they contain solutions beneficial for Polish society. This also concerns the 0% SEJF project.
He stressed that his decision regarding the EU’s SAFE program was made independently and in the interest of Polish citizens.
“I believe that decisions concerning Poland’s freedom, sovereignty, security, the development of the Polish Armed Forces, and the defense industry are decisions of the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Poland, not of Brussels and not of the European Union,” he said.
“We cannot surrender sovereignty”
The president recalled that he had made this promise during the election campaign in nearly 400 locations. He emphasized that Poland wants to remain part of the EU, but that “there are limits to the centralization of the European Union,” defined by both Polish and EU law. Nawrocki added that the SAFE program is inconsistent with Article 4 of the Treaty on European Union and with the Polish Constitution.
“We cannot hand over sovereignty, decision-making powers, or security to the European Union, because the fundamental law in Poland does not allow it,” he said.
“We made every effort to work on this bill so that Poland could use European funds in a way that would not undermine the Polish constitutional system. It was not possible to refine it to a level where we could say that our sovereignty would be preserved. Taking on obligations until 2070, also on behalf of these wonderful children and young people standing here with us, is too serious a commitment to sign such a loan,” the president stated.
He also pointed out that it is impossible to predict what the European Union will look like in several decades. In his view, Poland cannot “become trapped” in a program that does not allow freedom in strategic thinking about national security. He emphasized that flexibility is necessary — and that such flexibility is provided by the 0% SEJF proposal.