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Submitted by Marcin Bąk on Mon, 09/21/2020 - 08:40
Interview with Ryszard Terlecki
Polityka


(the interview was conducted at the Economic Forum in Karpacz on 8 September 2020) 

 

– Our readers and followers from Hungary are curious about the current situation of the Polish right-wing. What are the main political forces? People generally just say "PiS" but in actual fact the United Right is a much broader political body. How do these divisions of the right-wing and its internal structure affect the ability to govern Poland?

– First of all I have a little announcement. Even though for Hungarians it might not seem much... We came out triumphant in elections once again. This was our fourth victory in a row: local elections, parliamentary, European (for the European Parliament – editor) and now the presidential elections. Before that we had won the elections three times, including the general elections, which means that we have an independent majority in the parliament once again. One can venture to say that we have achieved a major success, considering the prevailing conditions in Europe. However, the fact that three elements make up our parliamentary majority as well as the government cannot be overlooked. These are the Law and Justice as well as two other small parties, the Agreement and United Poland. Together the three are known as the United Right. However, deputies from all these parties run in the elections on Law and Justice lists, and as such referring to those parties as "independent" is – in my opinion – going a little too far, as they did not have to prove themselves in their own right in a direct electoral confrontation – admitted Ryszard Terlecki, Deputy Speaker of the Sejm.

He pointed out that now, following a second consecutive presidential elections victory, three years remain until the next ones. – A lot can be done during that period. Especially immediately after the elections: always the best moment for changes. We have to come to an agreement with these two small groups in terms of cooperation, both within the government and in the parliament. Thus is what we are trying to do now. Coalition talks are underway. We are discussing issues such as the structure of the cabinet and the programme for reforms which are in the pipeline.

The leader of Law and Justice stated that out of those, the most important are completing the judiciary system reform and what he called media restructuring. – We are faced with quite a peculiar situation in Poland, where the lion's share of the media, especially the traditional media such as the press, TV and radio, but also internet based media, is controlled by foreign capital. And this becomes particularly obvious during elections, when foreign interests are seen to be trying to leverage the Polish electoral results - explained Deputy Speaker Terlecki.

– The impending cabinet reshuffle... There was talk of it as early as on the day after the results of the presidential elections were announced. It was said that "a cabinet reshuffle is imminent". Some changes to ministerial posts have already taken place, but we still do not know the ultimate composition of the cabinet. Mr. Speaker, can you shed some light on what is to come, without mentioning any names perhaps, but outlining the general direction of the changes?

– First and foremost a government has to function efficiently. With the prospect of looming elections it wasn't possible to make any changes. However, some changes are required. We have more than twenty ministries. Once restructuring is complete we would want that number reduced to fourteen. There are definitely too many junior ministers, secretaries of state, etc. For one, the above is to make the work of the government more efficient but also to instil a certain enthusiasm into the work of ministers who will, from now on, manage large departments comprising amalgamated economic or social units. Ministers will have to "fit in" with their ministries into our planned reforms. We shall see if that delivers the desired results. We certainly hope so. At the moment we are in talks with our coalition partners – parties who thus far have had two ministries each but from now on will have just one each. Which ministries they will manage is still up in the air – said the Deputy Speaker.

The subsequent part of the interview focused on the contemporary shape of foreign affairs policy and in particular that of the Visegrád Group. – From time to time we have been hearing from Budapest as well as other capitals in the Group that Poland is looked upon as the leader of this region. There is still much to do, but there are also plenty of opportunities. How do you perceive the perspectives facing the Visegrád Group?

– First of all we are trying to avoid using phrases such as "leader". We do not want to discourage our partners who are smaller in terms of their territories and populations, such as Lithuania for example with whom we are enjoying very close cooperation at the moment. Partners are often sensitive to domination issues: we do not want that. On the other hand we are the largest country in the region and possibly the country whose economy is showing the fastest growth. There are certain premises indicating that we are suitable for that role – said Deputy Speaker Terlecki.

The politician elaborated that if talking about the countries in our region which are members of the European Union, a reform of the EU itself is the most pressing problem. – We do not want to find ourselves in a situation where the European Union will start heading in a direction unacceptable for us. And this could happen if it turned out that treaties are ineffective, that different standards are applied to countries of the Old and New Europe, that certain solutions can be imposed on others, solutions which are in place in some countries but may be unacceptable for us. We will have to deal with all that in due time. The EU is on the threshold of making decisions which will determine its shape for years to come. Although it is loath to admit it, the Union is currently facing the largest crisis since its inception in the 1950s. And Great Britain, one of its most powerful members, leaving the EU is part of that crisis. It is an utter catastrophe. However, the EU is acting as if though nothing happened. Secondly, rivalry between the world's major political players such as the United States and China is intensifying. Europe is trying to maintain its position albeit its strength required to find solutions for itself is wavering. Thirdly, and this is very worrying for us, (the European Union - editor) is subject to a degrading, suicidal ideology, one which undermines the civilisational structure upon which Europe is built. It keeps on pursuing crazy projects and is trying to impose the same on us in Eastern Europe. We will also have to deal with that when the time comes. These are serious problems faced by the foreign policies of Poland, Hungary, Lithuania and Romania. On top of that we have Russia lurking in the east. I don't think I need to explain the dangers that this brings – added the Deputy Speaker.

– You mentioned a number of important problems and pitfalls. If we were to talk about positives... Do you see any, within arm's reach, initially attainable by the four countries (of the Visegrád Group. - editor) and then by a larger group of Central European states?

- For our four the positives are obvious. The voice of the Visegrád Group is becoming increasingly more prominent in the European Union. One simply has to look at the media reports after the Polish and Lithuanian presidents' declarations pertaining to Belarus. Similar opinions to the effect that "The Visegrád Group's position is clear" appeared immediately after. And the Visegrád Group's negotiating power, also when we consider the forthcoming European Union reforms, is significant. Naturally it is not only political projects which are important. Infrastructure and military undertakings are also crucial. And here we have something else which we're on the brink of achieving. The Via Carpathia, a communication network along the north-south axis which is currently under construction. This fits in perfectly with the Hungarian fast railway programme linking Central European capitals. An integration of all of the above together with cooperation at border crossings will act to further and strengthen cooperation in our region – summed up the Deputy Speaker of the Sejm, Law and Justice parliamentary club leader Ryszard Terlecki.