Poland.

[TsarSamuil]

Hell is wrong with these people? They got a country where 97% consider themselves Polish, yet they are "under threat" they don't realize how good they have it...I think without Russophobia they wouldn't know what to do with their nationalism, filling a void? Are they bored or something??

This is some maidan stupid crap!..

www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2830434/215-arrests-Warsaw-clashes-Polish-holiday.html

Over 200 arrests as Warsaw nationalist march ends in clashes, flares, water cannon.

RT.com
November 11, 2014 16:03


Far-right protesters throw flares in front of the National Stadium during the annual far-right rally, which coincides with Poland's National Independence Day in Warsaw November 11, 2014 (Reuters / Kacper Pempel)Far-right protesters throw flares in front of the National Stadium during the annual far-right rally, which coincides with Poland's National Independence Day in Warsaw November 11, 2014 (Reuters / Kacper Pempel)

At least 215 people were arrested after clashes broke out in Warsaw. Some Polish nationalists, who took to the streets to mark the country’s National Independence Day, threw flares and stones at police. Law enforcers responded with water cannon.

Tens of thousands marched through the Polish capital Tuesday with many carrying the national flag, while flares and firecrackers were also let off. The march was attended by extremist nationalist groups, such as the Radical Camp and the All-Polish Youth.

Marches through the city’s capital have taken place every year since 2008 and have often led to clashes between rival political organizations.

For the fourth consecutive year the procession turned violent, with a group breaking away as they crossed a bridge over the Vistula river and reached the eastern bank, near the Polish national football stadium.

According to Reuters, they tore up paving slabs and benches from a nearby bus station and started to throw them at police, who were dressed in riot gear.

Law enforcement officers responded by approaching the rioters and using a water cannon truck to push the marches back onto the bridge in the direction they had come. Some outlets report rubber bullets and tear gas was deployed.

At least two police officers were wounded in the clashes, while at least 215 people were detained, Gazeta Wyborcza said.

Though the provocateurs were eventually separated from the march by a police cordon, clashes still go on. Ruptly showed from the scene that police, armed with shields, again had to resort to water cannons to stop the crowd. The people at the stadium were waving flags and throwing flares.



In November 2013, police had to use rubber bullets and pepper spray to disperse a crowd of violent Polish nationalist demonstrators during an Independence Day march in Warsaw, who pelted the Russian embassy with firecrackers and bottles.

Officers in riot gear formed a cordon around the building, as young shaven-headed demonstrators waving red-and-white flags tried to push through. The crowd shouted slogans directed against Russia, Poland’s eastern neighbor, which the demonstrators blamed for World War II atrocities and occupation during the Soviet era.



Poland's foreign ministry criticized the action, saying "there is no justification for hooliganism."

National Independence Day has been celebrated since November 11, 1918, when the country gained independence after being partitioned between Russia, Prussia and the Hapsburg Empire.

[TsarSamuil]

‘Polish far-right nationalists serve as instruments of US, EU policy’

RT.com
November 12, 2014 11:32

It is hard to tackle the problem of extreme nationalists in Poland as Warsaw is toeing the EU and pro-US line in its policies instead of trying to get things in the country in order, political analyst Aleksandr Pavic told RT.

About 300 far-right protesters were arrested after clashing with the police in Warsaw Tuesday, as a thousand-strong annual march marking National Independence Day turned violent for the fourth year in a row. Demonstrators were throwing flares and stones at police officers, who responded with water cannon.

RT: It's the fourth year in a row that this nationalist rally has turned violent in Warsaw. What's provoking them?

Aleksandr Pavic: This is a part of a larger trend, it’s not specific to just Poland. We are seeing this sort of nationalist trend in all of Europe, especially the EU countries. And it’s really a reaction to the present state of the EU – it’s the long economic recession, the increasing power of Brussels bureaucracy which is trying to expand its power at the expense of states and European nations. What is happening in Poland maybe is a little bit more violent today, but again, we had similarly violent demonstrations in Brussels just the other day. So really this is just a trend and the EU, especially the EU bureaucracy should have a lot to worry about.

RT: How big is the far right problem in Poland? What should the authorities be doing to tackle it?

AP: It’s very hard to do. Poland’s authorities are toeing the EU line; they are also toeing pro-US line. What this is, it is globalist politics, this is politics at the expense of nation-states. Poland itself is a kind of hostage to this sort of policy that they have chosen once they have joined the EU. What they could really do to satisfy nationalists - just like any other European nation-state - is to try to get its house in order without receiving orders from abroad, from a faceless bureaucracy which is not accountable to any voters. Of course we are not seeing a trend toward that in Poland. On the contrary, we are seeing more power being handed over to bureaucracy that is outside of the state.

RT: What has been done to crack down the far-right forces?

AP: The problem is that both Brussels and Washington are trying to use far-right and extreme nationalists to make them instruments of policy. Right now the target is Russia. They have revived the extreme nationalism in Ukraine with the help of Poland, with the help of Polish authorities. It sounds like a paradox but it’s not – it’s Brussels, Washington that are fomenting extreme nationalism and they are trying to point it toward the East so as to deflect the real target to which it should be pointed which is more toward the West.


A protester holds a flare as several hundred masked men broke away from a far-right march and threw stones and flares at lines of riot police in Warsaw November 11, 2014 (Reuters / Kacper Pempel)A protester holds a flare as several hundred masked men broke away from a far-right march and threw stones and flares at lines of riot police in Warsaw November 11, 2014 (Reuters / Kacper Pempel)

Political scientist Mateusz Piskorsky on nationalist march in Poland: “The issue is that they seem to try to follow the example of Hungary and the example of Jobbik, the Movement for a Better Hungary, which had relative political success after organizing several thousand people on the streets of Budapest some years ago, they have entered the parliament. But one has to understand that in Poland conditions are totally different and there are no such political opportunities for them. They have already participated in elections. The movement was called the National Movement and they got just around one percent. So the only possibility for them to gather and mobilize forces is Independence Day.”

[TsarSamuil]

Police intervene as protesters occupy electoral commission HQ.

theNews.pl
21.11.2014 09:03

Police detained 12 people on Thursday night after nationalists occupied part of the headquarters of the National Electoral Commission (PKW) owing to delays in publishing local election results.

The protesters, who included members of the far-right National Movement organisation, staged the protest under the slogan 'Stop Electoral Manipulation,' demanding the instant dismissal of all members of PKW.
Computers glitches, partly blamed on hackers, have been causing delays in publishing the results of the 16 November local elections.

Conservative opposition party Law and Justice, together with the Democratic Left Alliance, had called on Wednesday for the elections to be repeated, albeit not immediately.

However, Law and Justice has already distanced itself from last night's protest, stressing that the party has a “decidedly negative” view of the action.
“The invasion and occupation of state institutions is not the solution to the problem and can only deepen the chaos associated with the protracted process by which the results of the local elections are released,” a party statement affirmed.

Protesters

Last night's action prompted PKW to suspend the vote counting, over fears for security, causing yet further delays to the process.

On Wednesday, President Bronislaw Komorowski had said that “we cannot allow for the integrity of the ballot to be called into question, namely through calls for the elections to be repeated.
''That would be complete madness,'' he added.

Prosecutors have now launched an investigation into the hacking of the computer system used in the vote count.

Regional assembly results trickle in

Meanwhile, by 8 am on Friday morning, just five of Poland's 16 regions had managed to publish the ir official results in the elections to regional assemblies.
Prior to that, the results concerning 1584 heads of local administration, including city mayors, are through, came through in the early hours of Wednesday morning.



Nationalists hold demos over ballot bungle.

theNews.pl
22.11.2014 16:49

They were protesting against what they called manipulations accompanying local elections and demanding a repeat of the ballot.

In the capital, a several-dozen-strong group gathered in front of the Warsaw District Court to protest against alleged irregularities in the manner of conducting the vote and to express solidarity with persons who have been put on trial for Thursday’s illegal occupation of the premises of the National Electoral Commission, which demanded police intervention.

Robert Winnicki, one of the Nationalist Movement leaders present at the Warsaw protest, said his organization has put forth three point demands.

The first, relieving members of the national Electoral Commission of their mandates, has already been satisfied, Winnicki said. There still remain two issues, namely, the changing of the election ordinance and repetition of local elections.

Similar demands have been voiced during demonstrations organized by the National Movement in Krakow, Katowice, Poznan and Wroclaw. (ss/jb)

------------

Entire Electoral Commission resigns.

theNews.pl
22.11.2014 13:35

All six judges on the National Electoral Commission (PKW) have announced they will resign, following widespread problems with last week’s local elections.

The judges made the decision following a meeting on Friday, two days after the head of the National Electoral Office resigned over the vote problems.

The judges did not give any official reasons for their resignation, though it is assumed to also be linked to issues with the local elections.

The results of the local election have been delayed by repeated crashes of the computer system, as well as allegations of hacking. Opposition parties including the conservative Law and Justice Party have called for the election to be repeated.

It is expected that the judges will remain in their positions until the end of the second round, which will take place at the end of the month, before handing over to the new judges.

President Bronislaw Komorowski, who has appealed for calm and earlier rejected the idea of repeating the elections, will meet with members of the Constitutional Tribunal on Monday to discuss electoral issues, before meeting the head of the PKW on Tuesday.

The full results of the elections have not yet been revealed as vote counting is still underway in both the Lower Silesian and Mazovia Voivodeships. (sl/jb)

Source: PAP/IAR

[TsarSamuil]

Poland: Meet Robert Biedron, Poland’s first openly gay mayor.

RuptlyTV
Dec 6, 2014

www.youtube.com/watch?v=J9NI_FawuAY

Poland’s first openly homosexual mayor, Robert Biedron was sworn in, Saturday, taking his seat as mayor of the northern city of Slupsk. After his inauguration, the newly declared mayor addressed his audience in Słupsk’s town hall, stating that “from today, from now, a new stage in the history of Slupsk starts.”

Running as a member of MP Janusz Palikot’s 'Your Movement’ party, Biedron won the city’s mayoral elections last week by 14 percent of the vote. The 38-year-old garnered 57.08 percent of the ballot (15,308 votes), beating the ruling Civic Platform’s candidate Zbigniew Konwinski, who received 42.92 percent (11,511 votes).

One of the first members of Poland’s parliament to speak about his sexuality, Bierdron is a staunch campaigner for LGBT rights, setting up and administrating the Polish organisation Campaign Against Homophobia before his entrance into politics.

[TsarSamuil]

Polish ban on kosher and halal slaughter overturned.

RT.com
December 11, 2014 15:36

A Polish court has ruled the ban on the slaughter of animals without stunning, a practice for kosher and halal rituals, is unconstitutional. Hailed as a "triumph for religious liberty," the ban had been pushed for by animal rights activists.

President of the Conference of European Rabbis, Rabbi Pinchas Goldschmidt said in a statement the ruling meant that kosher slaughter "can continue in Poland as it has done for generations."

"The constitution guarantees the freedom of religion which includes the carrying out of all activities, practices, rites and rituals which have a religious character," Judge Maria Gintowt-Jankowicz stated in her final verdict.

"The same constitutional protection also extends to religious activities which differ from conventional behavior which prevails in the country - including activities that are perhaps unpopular among the majority of society," she added on Wednesday.

Ritual slaughter (Jewish 'shechitah' and Muslim 'halal') has been banned in Poland since January 1, 2013, after a vigorous campaign waged by local animal rights activists. Jewish communities argued the ban violated the fundamental right to practice their faith, insisting that biblical slaughter practices (without stunning animals first to reduce their pain) meant that animals had to be conscious when being killed.

The Polish High Court stated the protection of animals "does not take priority over constitutional guarantees of religious freedom." The judge ruled that "religious freedom is a supreme value in accordance with the constitution of Poland and stands above any other law and is not restricted."

The Jewish and Muslim communities each number between 20,000 and 30,000 people in a country of over 38 million. Prior to the ban, Polish farmers had exported up to 500 million euros worth of kosher and halal meat a year. However, the moratorium forced Poland’s Jewish and Muslim communities to import meat in a country that was once a key exporter.

"Religious freedom for Jewish communities in Europe has been under threat from those who would ban ritual slaughter and male circumcision, two fundamental Jewish rites," a survivor of the Holocaust, Abraham Foxman, with the US-based Anti-Defamation League, told AP.

He said Poland's highest court struck an "important victory for religious freedom, not only for the Jews of Poland but also for other European Jewish communities."

A board member of the Jewish Community of Warsaw said the tribunal "gave a very good signal that Poland is not an anti-Semitic country," Piotr Kadlcik told Reuters.

[TsarSamuil]

Poland: Ultras light giant BLAZE in honour of post- WWI uprising.

RuptlyTV
Dec 27, 2014



Some 400 Polish football fans lit flares in commemoration of the 1918 Greater Poland Uprising in Poznan, Saturday. The ceremony was conducted in aid of the campaign to renovate the graves of those killed. The campaign has so far managed to raise $167,000 (€136,857).

[TsarSamuil]

Polish presidential candidate vows better ties with Russia.

By ASSOCIATED PRESS
20:43 GMT, 14 February 2015

OZAROW MAZOWIECKI, Poland (AP) — The presidential candidate for Poland's main left-wing party on Saturday criticized what she called the Polish government's antagonistic attitude to Russia, saying she would be willing to speak directly to Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Magdalena Ogorek told a convention of the Democratic Left Alliance that Poland cannot afford to continue being described as "enemy No. 1" in the Russian media.

Poland's center-right government, which includes communist-era dissidents, has been one of Europe's most vocal critics of Putin's actions in Ukraine.

Ogorek said her party, the successor to the Cold War-era Communist party, condemns Russian actions in Ukraine but wants Warsaw and Moscow to communicate.

"I would not be afraid to answer messages from Vladimir Putin and I would pick up the receiver to call (him)," Ogorek said. "Russia is and will remain our neighbor."

Ogorek, 35, and several other candidates face an uphill battle in their attempt to unseat the popular incumbent, Bronislaw Komorowski, in the May 10 presidential vote. Ogorek has the support of only around 5 percent of voters, and critics say her youth and lack of political experience make her an unconvincing candidate.

Ogorek has a doctorate in history, has worked in public administration and has had minor roles in films and TV soap operas. An attempt to win a parliament seat in 2011 failed.

After her speech Saturday, Ogorek once again refused to take questions from reporters. That has sparked some criticism — and a lack of knowledge about her views has allowed some Poles to focus on things like her striking good looks and the fact that her last name means "cucumber" in Polish.


Poland's leading left-wing candidate for president Magdalena Ogorek and Poland's main leftist party, the Democratic Left Alliance, leader Leszek Miller, right, greet supporters during her electoral convention in Ozarow Mazowiecki, Poland, Saturday, Feb. 14, 2015. Ogorek criticized Poland¿s current leadership for its strong critical stance toward Russia and suggested it bears some blame for the deep tensions between the two neighbors. The presidential election will be held May 10. (AP Photo/Alik Keplicz)

[TsarSamuil]

European court throws out Polish CIA-jail appeal.

Reuters
18.02.2015 08:35

The European Court of Human Rights has rejected an appeal lodged by Poland over CIA black sites hosted in the country.

The decision will force Warsaw to move on with legal proceedings against people in Poland who allowed the jails to operate.

The Polish Foreign Ministry has already issued a statement saying that it will abide to the court’s decision.

The Strasbourg-based court ruled in July 2014 that Poland should quickly conclude a criminal investigation into the jail, and issue a total compensation of EUR 230,000 to two formers detainees of the jail.

“Poland is required to finally conduct a thorough and effective investigation, make public information concerning its role and hold those responsible to account,” Helen Duffy, the lawyer for Abu Zubaydah, one of the former detainees, said following the court’s decision on Tuesday.

The site of the Szymany airport in northern Poland was used as a secretive facility by the US Central Intelligence Agency to hold suspects for interrogation following the 9/11 attacks. (rg)

[TsarSamuil]

Ewa Kopacz's government approval rating hits low.

Onet.pl
18.02.2015 16:32

The government’s approval rating is down to 30 percent, its lowest level since Prime Minister Ewa Kopacz took her office in September last year.

Kopacz’s government now has more disapprovals at 32 percent than approvals, the opinion pollster CBOS said. The figures mark the third month in a row of deteriorating approval for the cabinet.

The prime minister herself has a 33 percent approval rating against 47 percent disapprovals.

Kopacz and her cabinet are nevertheless more popular than the parliament, which has an 18 percent approval rating against a whopping 71 percent disapproval, according to CBOS.

President Bronisław Komorowski remains popular with a 71 percent approval against 21 disapprovals. (an)

[TsarSamuil]

Pres. Komorowski: no reason to hype military threat to Poland.

PAP
18.02.2015 15:55

President Bronisław Komorowski said on Wednesday following a meeting of the National Security Council that there is no reason to create an atmosphere which hypes any direct military threat to Poland.

“Frightening Poles with a vision of war is something which is extremely wrong,” Komorowski underlined.

Komorowski maintained that during the current period of presidential electoral campaigning, some candidates are keen to employ “radical and sometimes even panic-stricken opinions such as the threat of war”.

“Poland is a relatively safe country, as one can feel safe in an generally dangerous world,” Komorowski opined after the council meeting, which brings together the president, head of the National Security Bureau, party leaders and ministers to discuss matters of national security.

Following the National Security Council meeting, Komorowski also underlined that Poland is to support Ukraine on the international stage and help find a solution to the ongoing crisis.

The comment comes as Poland’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs released a statement on Wednesday which reads that the ongoing fighting in the Ukrainian town of Debaltseve in the Donbas “is unilaterally a breach of the Minsk agreement” which was signed in the Belarusian capital last week over a ceasefire in eastern Ukraine.

“It is with deep unrest that we acknowledge the news that the Ukrainian army has retreated from Debaltseve as a result of pressure and artillery fire from anti-Ukrainian forces,” the foreign ministry statement reads.

No plans to supply Ukraine with weapons

Meanwhile, Defence Minister Tomasz Siemoniak said that there are no plans to supply Ukraine with weapons, adding that “such a possibility should arise in the future”. “The world should concentrate on implementing the Minsk agreement as well as finding a way to initiate dialogue and peace,” Siemoniak underlined.

The Minsk agreement was signed on 12 February in the Belarusian capital between the heads of state of Russia, Ukraine, Germany and France. A ceasefire was supposed to come into force at midnight on the 14-15 February.

While the ceasefire has been generally observed, pro-Russian rebels continued to intensify attacks on the town of Debaltseve, with Ukrainian forces retreating from the town on Wednesday. Ukrainian president Petro Poroshenko said that the retreat was “planned and organised” and was not due to being surrounded by pro-Russian rebel forces, but to show the international community that it is not Ukraine which is breaking the Minsk agreement. (jb)

-------------

Survey: Poles worried about Ukraine conflict.

theNews.pl
18.02.2015 14:10

A survey released by CBOS pollsters on Wednesday shows almost three quarters of Poles think that the Ukraine conflict is a threat to Polish security.

The poll reveals that 67 percent of respondent think that the conflict is a threat to European security, while 55 percent believe that it is a threat to global security.

As many as 56 percent of respondents said that Poland, along with EU countries, should support Ukraine, while 33 percent think that Poland should not engage with the crisis at all.

A total of 6 percent feel that Poland should aid Ukraine as an act of neighbourly support.

However, as many as 62 percent believe that Poland should not give any financial assistance to Ukraine, while 31 percent said that Poland should.

The survey was carried out between 5-11 February on a representative selection of 1,003 Polish residents. (jb)

[TsarSamuil]

New Pro-Russian Party Emerges in Poland.

Novinite.com
World » EU | March 23, 2015, Monday // 15:05

A new pro-Russian party called Zmiana, which means “change”, emerged on the political scene in Poland.

The party, which has a strong anti-US orientation, supports Russian President Vladimir Putin's policies and sees Russia as natural ally for both Poland and the EU, EUobserver reports.

Its leader Mateusz Piskorski denies Russian aggression against Ukraine, supports pro-Russian separatists and recognises Crimea's secession referendum as legal.

The party also criticises the Polish government's “confrontational” and “anti-Russian” policies and deems the Russian support for separatists as a “natural reaction”.

This shows the differing attitudes towards Russia in Polish society and opinion polls suggest that the party has potential support.

The emergence of the party coincides with the recent launch of Sputnik radio and news site, which purports to be presenting the Russian point of view.

Zmiana has been subject of investigation by the National Security Council, but so far no direct ties with Russia have been established.

There is a strong anti-Ukrainian sentiment among Polish society due to past events, such as the Volhynian massacre.

According to opinion polls, one third opposes Poland's support for Ukraine, while more than half of Poles believe that the help should not exceed the collective EU response.

Large majority of Poles – 75 % fear that the Ukrainian conflict poses a direct threat to Poland and it is expected that Zmiana will attempt to appeal to this electorate.

The party estimates that it could pass the electoral threshold of 5 % and garner as much as 12 % of the votes at the forthcoming elections in October.

Zmiana is not the only pro-Russian party in Poland, with similar sentiments being expressed within parties such as Civic Platform, Polish Peasants' Party and former communist SLD party.

[TsarSamuil]

Poland: Anti-Kiev patriots protest outside Ukraine's Consulate General.

RuptlyTV
Apr 10, 2015



Protesters gathered in front of Ukraine's Consulate General in Krakow on Friday, condemning Poland’s support for the Kiev military. The protesters brought a banner declaring their patriotism, held speeches and chanted nationalist and anti-Kiev slogans.

[TsarSamuil]

Polish president suffering from 'anti-Russian diarrhea' - opposition.

RT.com
May 05, 2015 13:54

The leader of the opposition Democratic Left Alliance (SLD) and former Polish Prime Minister Leszek Miller has described Bronisław Komorowski's election campaign as "anti-Russian diarrhea."

Speaking Tuesday on Polish RMF FM Radio, Miller said the anti-Russian direction President Komorowski has chosen to build his campaigning on is a serious blow to Polish-Russian relations, RIA Novosti reports. The presidential election in Poland is scheduled for May 10.

Leszek Miller said the SLD's presidential candidate Magdalena Ogórek is "standing up to the anti-Russian diarrhea that is affecting the incumbent president and all of the right-wing politicians."

His words echoed Ogórek's interview to the Polish weekly Wprost, in which she accused Komorowski of "not fulfilling his obligations" and concentrating too much on the crisis in Ukraine. She said the threat of Islamic State is much greater than the perceived dangers of Russia.

Speaking during Sunday's Constitution Day celebration, President Komorowski dubbed the upcoming Victory Day parade in Moscow a symbol of instability: "Soon Red Square will turn into an armored square again. The divisions that recently attacked Ukraine in front of the whole world and in front of Poland will be demonstrating their strength."

Komorowski called on closer ties with NATO and the West as the only way to stand up to "the threats of the modern world," saying "military conflict has never been so close to Poland's borders."

On Monday, he approved the creation of a joint military brigade with Ukraine and Lithuania, a 4,500-strong unit which will answer directly to NATO. At the same time, he called on EU budget deficit limits to be lifted regarding defense spending, to encourage European nations to allocate more money to the military.

Poland is among the Western countries that have been accusing Russia of invading Ukraine, something Moscow is vehemently denying. So far, no definite proof has been provided of alleged Russian involvement, and the Ukrainian army's chief of staff earlier this year admitted there was no combat with Russian troops.

---------------

'Polish anti-Russian rhetoric scaremongering to remain in power'

RT.com
May 05, 2015 20:17

Increasingly anti-Russian rhetoric from Poland's president Bronisław Komorowski is mostly an effort to scare the population into re-electing him, Russia Insider international affairs editor Alexander Mercouris told RT.

RT: On Sunday, Bronisław Komorowski said the upcoming Victory Day parade in Moscow is a symbol of instability in the world. What do you think of that statement?

Alexander Mercouris: I think that at one level they are simply appalling. To talk about the victory over Nazism, a victory which liberated Poland and ensured that Poland today is a real, existing country, as a destabilizing factor in world affairs is nothing short of astonishing. At another level, of course, it's a political scaremongering by a Polish politician who wants to remain president.

RT: Will the tense relations affect the V-Day celebrations?

AM: Some people in Western Europe have been busy politicizing this anniversary in the most extraordinary way. What is happening on May 9 ought to be an event that should unite the whole of Europe. But what has happened is that because of the Ukrainian conflict and because of residual resentment, one suspects, of the disproportionate role Russia played in World War II victory, which some people want to downplay, it is being made into a cause of division. That is an absolute tragedy when you consider what that war meant and what that victory meant for millions upon millions of people.

RT: How do you see Russian-Polish relations develop?

AM: At this particular moment in time there is a very strong move within Poland to try and distance it from Russia and to create a kind of Russian scarecrow, basically to help certain Polish politicians. However, I have some knowledge of Poland, and I am confident that over time, relations between these two countries will improve. I have no doubt of it because that is very much in Poland's interest, and of course it is also, I think, something that would be a benefit to the whole of Europe.

RT: Komorowski said Poland cannot forget about Russia's threat - do you think there is any threat?

AM: No, Poland is not being threatened, and for Mr Komorowski to speak in that way is, as I said, complete scaremongering, done frankly very much with an eye to internal Polish politics. Also, with an eye to the kind of policies Poland has itself been following in Ukraine, where it has been playing, or rather, overplaying a very ambitious game which is well beyond its strength and which is going badly wrong.

The problem with this sort of scaremongering is that it creates tensions between Poland and Russia which are emphatically not in Poland's interest. And I think there are a lot of people in Poland who are aware of this and who are becoming very concerned about this, even if they are not the dominant force in Poland at the moment.

[TsarSamuil]

Hard tackle: Polish rugby fans threaten to kill Ukrainian nationalists, return Lvov to Poland.

RT.com
May 10, 2015 17:02


Reuters/Stefan WermuthReuters/Stefan Wermuth

Ukraine’s rugby team received a frosty welcome in neighboring Poland where local fans put up a banner, threatening to kill Ukrainian nationalists and demanding the city of Lvov to be returned to Poland.

“Take back Lvov. Kill Banderovites [followers of Ukrainian nationalist icon, Stepan Bandera],” the banner, written in both Polish and Ukrainian, read.

The vice mayor of the city of Lublin, which hosted the match, told the police to remove the banner.

"The banner contained ultra-rights slogans and called for violence. We had to intervene," Krzysztof Komorski told Gazeta Wyborcza newspaper.

/photo/1

However, the police refused to fulfil the official’s order due to the crowed in the stands being too aggressive.

The banner was eventually removed by five cheerleaders, with the girls saying that the fans swore at them, but didn’t attack.

Meanwhile, the Ukrainian team responded to the unfriendly crowd via sporting means, winning the match with 20-17 score.

The eastern Ukrainian city of Lvov was part of Poland until late 18th century and also after World War I.

It was transferred under the jurisdiction of the Soviet Republic of Ukraine only in 1946 after the end of World War II.

The Banderovites are the followers of Ukrainian nationalist icon, Stepan Bandera, who is now treated as “a freedom fighter” and a hero by the Kiev authorities.

Bandera’s Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA) collaborated with the Nazi during WWII and is blamed by Warsaw for slaughtering around 130,000 Poles.

Last October, the Polish football fans displayed a similar banner demanding the return of Lvov and Vilnius, now Lithuania, during an away Europa League game between Metalist Kharkov and Legia Warsaw.

[TsarSamuil]

Duda wins first round of presidential elections in Poland.

English.news.cn 2015-05-12 13:55:08

WARSAW, May 12 (Xinhua) -- The official results of the Sunday's presidential elections in Poland indicate that Andrzej Duda from Law and Justice party received 34.76 percent of all votes, thus winning the first round.

The current President of Poland, Bronislaw Komorowski (backed by Civic Platform party) was second and scored 33.77 percent of all votes.

The third place was taken by Pawel Kukiz, a popular musician, who scored 20.8 percent.

These results mean that on May 24th Poland will have the second round of the elections as none of the candidates won over 50 percent of all votes. The second round will involve only Duda and Komorowski, who are two candidates with the highest score in the first round.

The Polish National Election Commission also announced that out of 30 million eligible voters in Poland, only 48.96 percent voted in Sunday's elections.