Her comments on Monday followed a report that French far-right politician and leader of the National Front party, Marine Le Pen, allegedly said that she is willing to work with PiS leader Jarosław Kaczyński in order to “dismantle” the European Union.
Le Pen, who is gearing up for the 23 April presidential election in France, was quoted by the Rzeczpospolita daily as saying: “If I win, I will cooperate with Kaczyński to dismantle the Union”.
The Polish daily added that Le Pen’s offer would include working with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, as well as Kaczyński.
However, the wPolityce website said that Le Pen was misquoted, adding that the Rzeczpospolita article was “manipulation”.
wPolityce journalist Aleksandra Rybińska tweeted that she attended the Le Pen press conference, and the French presidential hopeful spoke of “cooperation in areas of shared common interests and not dismantling the Union”.
Marine Le Pen is lagging behind other candidates in the polls. However, international observers say a recent wave of nationalist sentiment in France could still put the politician in the Élysée Palace.
“If I were elected president tomorrow, I would undertake a debate with Orban on what we deem unacceptable in the European Union, [the points which are] intolerable in today's mode of operation by the EU,” Le Pen was quoted by Rzeczpospolita as saying.
“I would make the same deal to Kaczyński. Certainly, we will not agree on everything. But after that each country is free and sovereign to defend its own interests,” Le Pen was cited as saying, adding that another “partner in dismantling the Union” would be British Prime Minister Theresa May.
Following Donald Tusk’s re-election to head the European Council last week despite opposition from the Polish government, Foreign Minister Witold Waszczykowski said the “European Union has shown it has double standards, so Poland must limit its faith in the bloc”.
Poland’s prime minister over the weekend said that she does not support plans for a “multi-speed Europe”, a move that is being pushed by the larger countries in the bloc.
She said that varying speeds, rules and directions of development of EU countries will lead to a multi-speed Europe and the bloc's breakdown. (rg/pk)