Rafał Trzaskowski Criticises EU and Migration Policies

The news in Polish

1. kandydat (m.)
   osoba ubiegająca się o jakieś stanowisko ↩︎
2. migracyjny
   związany z przemieszczaniem się ludzi ↩︎
3. krytykować
   oceniać coś negatywnie ↩︎
4. mocny
   o dużej sile lub wytrzymałości ↩︎
5. granica (f.)
   linia oddzielająca państwa ↩︎
6. wprowadzać
   wprowadzić coś nowego lub w życie ↩︎
7. krytykować
   oceniać coś negatywnie ↩︎

Translation

Text Comprehension

Question: Who is Rafał Trzaskowski?

Question: What does Rafał Trzaskowski think about Poland accepting more migrants?

Vocabulary

Polish	English
kandydat (m.)	candidate
migracyjny	migration
krytykować	criticise
wprowadzać	introduce
mocny	strong
granica (f.)	borders

Read the full story

Trzaskowski, the current mayor of Warsaw, pointed out that Poland has already welcomed two million Ukrainian immigrants and suggested that the EU should compensate Poland for these efforts, especially if penalties are imposed for not accepting additional migrants. He emphasised that strengthening Poland’s eastern border is crucial for protecting the entirety of Europe.

The candidate also voiced his concerns over what he described as the EU’s “tens of mistakes.” In particular, he criticised the ambitious Green Deal, arguing that its strict regulations could undermine the competitiveness of European industries. Trzaskowski also condemned the opening of EU’s external borders to imports that do not meet standard regulations, urging that lessons be learned from the COVID-19 pandemic to rebuild European industry.

Furthermore, Trzaskowski addressed the importance of upholding the Schengen Area, recommending stronger external borders rather than internal divisions within the EU. He also declared that Poland is not ready to adopt the euro currency, highlighting a lack of current plans to do so.

On the domestic front, Trzaskowski criticised the ruling Law and Justice Party (PiS) for its handling of energy prices, accusing them of wasting resources needed for a successful energy transformation. While addressing claims made by a rival candidate about significantly lowering electricity costs, Trzaskowski expressed scepticism towards PiS’s credibility on this issue.

His remarks reflect a broad political strategy to balance traditional conservative stances with progressive social policies. He dismissed suggestions of a “rightward shift” in his politics, highlighting his commitment to defending marginalised communities and investing in a competitive economy as key aspects of his political agenda.

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