Sikorski was reacting to comments made by Law and Justice politician Witold Waszczykowski at a debate at the Batory Foundation in Warsaw on Tuesday, when he said that the Eastern Partnership – which aims to bring ex-Soviet states closer to the EU – was a “German concept disguised as a Polish-Swedish initiative”.
“We all remember that [the Eastern Partnership] was announced in person by Prime Minister Donald Tusk,” Sikorski said, Wednesday, “for which he first obtained the support of Sweden and then the whole EU”.
The Eastern Partnership programme, set up to aid Belarus, Ukraine, Moldova, Georgia, Azerbaijan and Armenia in their economic and democratic development, has been the centrepiece of Poland's six-month EU presidency, which began on 1 July.
“I ask Law and Justice not to embitter Poles against our largest trading partner [and] the largest net contributor to the EU budget, of which Poland is the largest beneficiary,” Sikorski added.
Law and Justice, when they were in government (2005 – 07) had, at times, frosty relations with Berlin, under the premiership of Jaroslaw Kaczynski.
“Former prime minister Jaroslaw Kaczynski is not even prime minister again yet, and he has already damaged [Poland's image],” the foreign minister said before the general election on 9 October.
Witold Waszczykowski retorted on Wednesday by telling the PAP news agency that should Jaroslaw Kaczynski become prime minister again, “relations with Chancellor Merkel will be completely normal”.
Ostpolitik
Waszczykowski said earlier this week at the Batory Foundation debate this that the Polish government was only supporting closer relations with Moldova under the framework of the Eastern Partnership, for instance, “only in order to serve the interests of Berlin, which depends on resolving the conflict with Transnitria”.
Transnitria declared itself an independent state in 1990, which Moscow and the state of Moldova refused to recognise. Moldova fought a war over the territory with Transnitria in 1992 and since then it has become a 'frozen state', not recognised by much of the international community.
International negotiations on the Transnitria question opened up again after a five year break in June this year, which includes the participation of the US, EU and Russia.
Germany's chancellor has long believed that Russia should be encouraged to solve the conflicts in the South Caucasus in return for creating a joint committee with the EU for regulating security affairs in the region.
The Polish Law and Justice party is bitterly opposed to Russia, with German help, having any say in European security matters. (pg/jb)