“Solidarity is an ability to sacrifice if necessary”

Warsaw — The 20th anniversary of winning freedom after the fall of communism in Central Europe will be celebrated in Krakow on June 4. It will be an opportunity for all Europeans to think once again about how important freedom is. This is what Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said on May 27 in Warsaw at a press conference for journalists from 26 European countries. He reminded them that the first free elections, which put in place the first non-communist government in this part of the world, took place in Poland on June 4, 1989. After this the events unfolded very rapidly and the peaceful revolution in Poland eventually led to the fall of the Berlin war.

The Polish prime minister took an active part in opposition activities and was responsible for underground publication of a liberal newspaper at the time. At the press-conference he emphasized: “We remember our experience. We will remind all Europeans that if you do not care about freedom and begin forgetting it, it begins to disappear and at first you don’t even realize or notice this. The economic crisis brought an especially painful realization that Europe has to remember what the sources of economic and political success of the Euro-Atlantic civilization are. This source is freedom, human rights, private ownership, competitive economy, and solidarity.”

Tusk also mentioned that when the Solidarity movement was founded, no one believed that the communism would fall in this part of Europe. In his words, no one believed that the Soviet Union and the satellite government would give in to the people’s peaceful movement that was against violence. When speaking about the importance of this anniversary, the Polish prime minister also stressed that united Europe was possible only because Europeans and the entire world kept in mind the idea of solidarity.

“The European Union and, in a wider sense, the Transatlantic community are meaningful only if they are based on the concept of solidarity and the ability to sacrifice one’s own interests when a weaker partner calls for solidarity. Nowadays solidarity is viewed in the EU as the most important pillar supporting the European community. Solidarity is an ability to sacrifice if necessary,” said Tusk. He also acknowledged that “we wouldn’t be able to celebrate June 4 and united Europe” without the liberal changes in Moscow, Mikhail Gorbachev, and Boris Yeltsin.

The Polish prime minister told the journalists: “An invitation to participate in the Krakow festivities was extended to the countries that benefited from the fall of communism. German Chancellor Angela Merkel lived in Eastern Germany on this side of the Iron Curtain. We have invited them, as well as those who have every right to be proud of the fact that they removed the Iron Curtain.” He also said that among those who were invited there is also Ukraine’s Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko, who represents an EU candidate state.

The Day’s reporter was able to ask the Polish prime minister a few questions and hear his opinion on the discussion that was started on May 9 in Germany. That day German Chancellor Angela Merkel met with French President Nicolas Sarkozy and spoke about the need to begin a discussion on the future boarders of Europe. Does this statement mean that the two most powerful states have more say in the EU and will define the future of this community by making decisions on who will be accepted or rejected?

Some Ukrainian politicians consider the Eastern Partnership program, which was initiated by Poland, to be a step to the side, while some American newspapers call the declaration that was adopted in Prague ‘seven pages of ramble’. Considering this, what chances does Ukraine have to integrate into the EU, in your opinion?

Here is what the Polish prime minister replied.

“There are several [different] views within the EU on the scale and rate of the EU enlargement. We can clearly see a lack of enthusiasm in Paris over the enlargement and Turkey’s accession to the EU. There is no progress with Croatia’s accession either, due to the local conflicts. The position of Slovenia creates uncertainty about Croatia’s rate of integration into the EU. The position of the Polish government toward Ukraine remains the same. We are the supporters and promoters of the fastest possible EU enlargement that will include Ukraine, Turkey, and Croatia.

“Poland considers the Eastern Partnership to be a means to speed up our eastern partners’ adjustment so that they will meet the EU standards. In Ukraine’s case this means a shorter period of waiting. The arguments against the EU enlargement are that in the abovementioned countries the efficiency of the state administration, the situation with human rights, and the fight against corruption are insufficient. In order to discard these arguments, it is necessary to find means and ways to secure these standards at the EU level.

“I believe that none of the European leaders has declared a negative attitude toward the EU enlargement. The statements made by Chancellor Merkel and President Sarkozy, who represent the biggest EU countries, are, no doubt, important. However, such statements only mean that any enlargement will require unanimity.

“It should be admitted that France’s skepticism regarding Turkey’s accession is nothing new … Turkey has many problems with Greece and Cyprus that have to be solved. For a country to be accepted into the EU there has to be unanimous support from all EU states. I agree with the statements in your question, in particular that this process was in a certain way complicated and slowed down.

“Poland’s role is to remind its friends in Paris and Berlin about the obligations that were committed to wring or made in public. The obligations regarding Turkey were even spelled out in documents. I very well remember how important it was for Poland that a document contained a statement about the EU enlargement with the accession of Poland and that Poland had to meet the criteria and requirements.

“I can say that Poland will be reminding [its European partners] that the key values that lie at the foundation of the EU include keeping promises and agreements. European civilization cannot exist without the principle of keeping one’s word. We will be reminding our European partners about this in connection with Turkey, Ukraine, and Croatia.”