Tomasz Sakiewicz, head of the House of Free Speech, commented on the latest developments on the international stage during the morning program on Radio Republika. Speaking with Adrian Stankowski and Edyta Hołdyńska, he emphasized the key role, for Poland, of President Karol Nawrocki during a teleconference of European leaders with Donald Trump.
Adrian Stankowski opened the conversation with a question about the government spokesman’s falsehood:
“Yesterday, there was a teleconference of European leaders with Donald Trump, ahead of his meeting with Putin in Alaska. Poland was represented by President Karol Nawrocki. Why did the government spokesman lie outright and get caught doing it? What kind of tactic is that?”
“They kept believing and fighting until the very end that they could change the decision or persuade Karol Nawrocki to issue a joint statement. This proposal came from Minister Sikorski. The aim was to create the impression that Donald Tusk had any presence at all in international circles, because it was obvious Trump didn’t want him there, but even his sponsors, his patrons, such as the German Chancellor, did not stand up for him. They accepted that Tusk had been excluded at Trump’s request. Even someone of Szłapka’s intellectual caliber understood that this was a disaster, that Tusk is a man entirely isolated and irrelevant in international circles, a man with no standing, who can even be humiliated, like with that baggage car they sent him to during the ‘Kyiv trip.’ Here you have a meeting of the most important people, where the most crucial geopolitical matters for Europe, and perhaps the world, are being decided,”
said Tomasz Sakiewicz.
Adrian Stankowski stressed the importance of Poland’s presence at the negotiating table: “This could be a turning point in world history, the building of a new world architecture, and Poland must be at that table. I get the impression that if someone else were president, no one from Poland would be there.”
Tomasz Sakiewicz agreed, adding:
“Karol Nawrocki’s victory has probably saved us in terms of our ability to influence matters that will be of fundamental importance for our security and our position in the world.”
Before the summit in Alaska, President Karol Nawrocki referred to the upcoming anniversary of the Battle of Warsaw, wishing Donald Trump that “just as the Poles in 1920 drove the Bolsheviks away from Warsaw, Donald Trump would achieve a similar victory in Alaska in his meeting with Putin.”
When asked about his expectations for the Trump-Putin meeting, Sakiewicz described the style of the American president:
“Trump is a tough player, although he is capable of sudden turns. He pushes very far. He can humiliate his interlocutors, his partners, he can corner them, but for him, the boundary is human life. He has repeatedly said that the killing must stop, and the rest can be negotiated.”
Edyta Hołdyńska noted that, with Putin, “soft diplomacy does not exist. He responds with force.”Sakiewicz expanded on this thought, analyzing the war situation in Ukraine:
“That kind of diplomacy has ceased to exist because Trump has tightened the screws. He increased sanctions on Russia. He gave the Ukrainians weapons dangerous to Russia. Unfortunately, we know that Putin has no regard whatsoever for losses. The only question is how long Russia can endure this war at all. Ukraine has problems too. You can see there are difficulties in mobilizing soldiers. Several years have passed. Everyone is tired. Trump is trying, in a commonsense way, to bring about a resolution. There are two extremely dangerous scenarios here: on the one hand, prolonging the war could lead to Ukraine starting to give up territory and bleeding so badly that the war could reach the heart of Ukraine; on the other hand, surrendering territory as part of a settlement, making significant concessions to Russia, could mean that the war flares up again soon, and in addition, it would be rewarding the aggressor. Trump, who has promised to restore peace very quickly, faces an extraordinarily difficult task. However, he is a player who can work in multiple stages, who can play hard, and I also have the impression that the maximum success from the Alaska meeting could be a cessation of fire. What happens next will be decided later. Russia plays weak hands.”