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Polish PM Tusk cancels Germany trip as bilateral relations sour

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk’s last-minute cancellation of his trip to Germany for the M100 Media Award ceremony, coupled with Chancellor Scholz’s withdrawal, highlights worsening Polish-German relations, per Euroactiv.

byYuri Zoria

10/09/2024

2 minute read

polish pm tusk cancels germany trip bilateral relations sour germany's federal chancellor olaf scholz (l) poland's prime minister (r) berlin february 2024 bundesregierungde 2024-02-12-bk-tusk

Germany’s Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz (L) with Poland’s Prime Minister Tusk (R) in Berlin in February 2024. Photo: bundesregierung.de

Polish PM Tusk cancels Germany trip as bilateral relations sour

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk has cancelled his planned visit to Germany, where he was scheduled to receive the M100 Media Award in Potsdam. The cancellation, announced just days before the event, comes amid worsening relations between Poland and Germany, Euroactiv says.

The cancellations have raised speculation about the state of Polish-German relations. Euroactiv’s sources familiar with the matter suggest the main cause of the deterioration is linked to the 2022 sabotage of Russia’s Nord Stream pipeline, following Poland’s recent refusal to arrest a Ukrainian citizen suspected of involvement in the explosion. Back in 2022, before three of the four Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipes were damaged, Russia had already halted or significantly reduced gas supplies to Europe through various pipelines, including the Nord Streams, in an attempt to pressure the EU into easing sanctions on Russia.

Tusk himself has been critical of Germany’s involvement in the Nord Stream projects. Last month, he publicly stated that “all the initiators and patrons of Nord Stream 1 and 2” should “apologize and keep quiet.”

According to the organizers of the M100 Sanssouci Colloquium, Tusk cited “important national commitments” as the reason for his inability to attend the ceremony in person. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, who was set to deliver a laudatory speech in Tusk’s honor, has also withdrawn from the event due to “scheduling conflicts.”

The M100 Media Award is presented to “personalities who are committed to strengthening democracy, freedom of expression and freedom of the press as well as to European understanding,” as stated by the German organization.

Neither side has officially confirmed that the cancellation of the two leaders’ visit to Potsdam is directly related to the apparent deterioration in relations.

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