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☆ Poland was not hub for Nord Stream sabotage, prosecutors say
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WARSAW, June 22 (Reuters) - There is no evidence to suggest that Poland was used as a hub for the sabotage of the Nord Stream pipeline, Polish prosecutors said on Thursday, rejecting a report that a team that blew up the pipelines may have used Poland as an operating base. The Wall Street Journal newspaper reported this month that German investigators are examining evidence suggesting a sabotage team used Poland as its base to damage the Nord Stream pipelines in the Baltic Sea in September. "The statement that 'Poland was a logistics hub for the operation of blowing up Nord Stream' is completely untrue and is not supported by the evidence of the investigation," the Polish National Prosecutor's Office said in a statement. Citing people familiar with the voyage, it said the sabotage crew placed deep-sea explosives on Nord Stream 1 before they setting the vessel on a course towards Poland. Polish prosecutors said that the Andromeda had sailed to Poland from the German island of Ruegen and spent 12 hours in a Polish port.

Persons: Alan Charlish Organizations: WARSAW, Street Journal, National Prosecutor's, Rzeczpospolita, Thomson Locations: Poland, Nord, Baltic, Ruegen, Polish

☆ Poland's Kaczynski rejoins government ahead of tough election
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WARSAW, June 21 (Reuters) - Poland's ruling party leader Jaroslaw Kaczynski returned to the cabinet as deputy prime minister on Wednesday, taking up a more prominent role ahead of a closely fought election expected in October or November. The other deputy prime ministers resigned and will continue as ministers. Kaczynski previously served as deputy prime minister from October 2020 till June 2022, and also headed Poland's security committee. Although PiS is ahead in most opinion polls, a question mark remains over whether it can secure a parliamentary majority. Divisons in the ruling coalition have also re-emerged over Poland's relations with Brussels, after the EU withheld funding over rule of law concerns.

Persons: Jaroslaw Kaczynski, Kaczynski, Andrzej Duda, PiS, Pawel Florkiewicz, Karol Badohal, Alan Charlish, Gareth Jones, Emma Rumney Organizations: WARSAW, Law, Justice, European Union, PiS, Thomson Locations: Republic, Warsaw, Brussels

☆ Polish president backpedals on law on undue Russian influence
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WARSAW, June 2 (Reuters) - Poland's President Andrzej Duda said on Friday he would propose amendments to a law on undue Russian influence he signed this week, reacting to criticism that it could result in banning opposition politicians from public office. Duda on Monday signed into law the bill proposed by the ruling party to let a panel investigate whether opposition parties allowed Poland to be unduly influenced by Russia. A spokesman for ruling nationalists Law and Justice (PiS) suggested the amendments could be acceptable for the party. "The amendment proposed by the president as a result of social pressure does not change anything. The entire law establishing this illegal kangaroo court should end up in the trash," Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz, leader of the Polish Peasants' Party (PSL), wrote on Twitter.

Persons: Andrzej Duda, Duda, Monday, PiS, Jarosław Kaczynski, Rafal Bochenek, Wladyslaw Kosiniak, Anna Wlodarczak, Andrew Cawthorne, Emelia, Angus MacSwan Organizations: WARSAW, Constitutional, U.S . State Department, European, Justice, Polish Peasants ' Party, Twitter, Thomson Locations: Poland, Russia, Polish

☆ Poland to ramp up child benefit payments from 2024
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

WARSAW, May 14 (Reuters) - The Polish government will increase monthly child benefit payments to 800 zlotys ($193.13) per child from 500 zlotys from the start of 2024, the leader of the ruling Law and Justice Party, Jaroslaw Kaczynski, said on Sunday. The family support program called "Family 500 plus" is a flagship project of the Law and Justice party (PiS), which was introduced in 2016. "... from the new year, 500 plus will be 800 plus," Kaczynski told a convention before parliamentary elections due this autumn. Child benefit payments currently cost the state budget over 40 billion zlotys a year. The next election convention of the Law and Justice party is to be held in June.

☆ Poland says object likely to be observation balloon entered airspace from east
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

WARSAW, May 13 (Reuters) - An unidentified object that entered Polish airspace from the direction of Belarus was probably an observation balloon, Poland's defence ministry said on Saturday on Twitter. NATO-member Poland is on alert for infractions of its airspace as war rages in neighbouring Ukraine after incidents in November and December in which missiles landed on its territory. Captain Ewa Zlotnicka, press officer of the Armed Forces Operational Command, told broadcaster TVN 24 the object entered Polish airspace on Friday evening. The ministry said radar contact with it was lost near Rypin, a town in north-central Poland. (This story has been refiled to clarify that the missile found in April was not the one fired in November, in paragraph 6.)

☆ Stocks tiptoe higher as US inflation data offers hope
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-10 | by ( Lawrence White | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

MSCI's gauge of global equity performance (.MIWD00000PUS) rose 0.03% after the Labor Department's Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose 4.9% year-over-year in April, against expectations of 5%. "Bigger picture, I think the market is hyper fixated on the ‘pause’ but a pause is still restrictive overall," he said. The dollar index hit a session low of 101.36 after the headline April inflation data, while benchmark 10-year German bond yields edged down 4 basis points. Emerging markets currencies rallied on Wednesday following the U.S. data, with MSCI's index (.MIEM00000CUS) up 0.26%. Spot gold turned positive after the CPI data, last trading up 0.3%.

☆ 'Military object' found in Poland probably not fired from abroad, broadcaster reports
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WARSZAWA, April 27 (Reuters) - A military object found in a Polish forest was probably not fired from abroad and most likely belonged to the Polish army, private broadcaster RMF FM reported on Thursday. The defence and justice ministries did not identify what had been had found near the city of Bydgoszcz, beyond describing it as a "military object". RMF said that its sources had noted that fighter jets were repaired near the site, which was near an airport used by the military. "The Military Department of the District Prosecutor's Office in Gdansk, under the supervision of the National Prosecutor's Office, initiated proceedings regarding the remains of an aerial military object found in a forest several kilometres from Bydgoszcz," Justice Minister Zbigniew Ziobro said on Twitter. The military police, regional police, the mayor of the village of Zamosc, the Gdansk prosecutor's office and a government spokesman all declined to comment further.

☆ Microsoft says it launches data centre in Poland
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

WARSAW, April 26 (Reuters) - Microsoft has launched a data centre in Poland, the company's President for Europe, the Middle east and Africa (EMEA) said on Wednesday at the European Economic Congress in the southern city of Katowice. Reporting by Alan Charlish, Pawel FlorkiewiczOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

SummarySummary Companies Three EU states have banned Ukrainian grain, food importsRomania looks set to follow suitUkraine also trying to salvage Black Sea grain dealWARSAW, April 18 (Reuters) - Poland agreed on Tuesday to lift a ban on the transit of Ukrainian grain and food products, but Ukraine said a wartime deal allowing it to safely ship grain from Black Sea ports was still under threat. Failure to resume exports into eastern European countries or secure an extension of the Black Sea grain deal would trap large amounts of grain in Ukraine, hitting its exports and causing further economic problems for Kyiv as it battles Russian troops. Large quantities of Ukrainian grain have been trapped by bottlenecks in eastern and central Europe as low global prices and demand mean grain cannot easily be sold on. BLACK SEA GRAIN DEAL IN DOUBTUkraine, which relies on grain and food sales for a significant slice of its gross domestic product, also has concerns about the Black Sea Grain Initiative brokered between Moscow and Kyiv by Turkey and the United Nations last July. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov will discuss the Ukraine Black Sea grain export deal with U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in New York next week, Russia's U.N. envoy said on Tuesday.

KYIV, April 17 (Reuters) - Kyiv will aim to secure the re-opening of food and grain transit via Poland as "a first step" at talks in Warsaw on Monday, Ukraine's agriculture minister said, after Poland and Hungary announced bans on some imports from Ukraine. Poland's ban on grains, in effect since Saturday evening, also applied to transit through the country. Officials have said it is meant to keep grain transport from entering the Polish market. Deliveries to Hungary accounted for around 6% of Ukraine's farm exports, he said, adding that Ukrainian food transit via Hungary and Slovakia was unaffected. Talks between Ukraine and Poland were due to start in Warsaw around 12:00 p.m. (1000 GMT), Polish Agriculture Minister Robert Telus said on TVP Info.

☆ Polish government bans grain and food imports from Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-15 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

REUTERS/Pavlo PalamarchukWARSAW, April 15 (Reuters) - The Polish government has decided to ban imports of grain and other food from Ukraine to protect the Polish agricultural sector, the leader of the ruling Law and Justice Party (PiS), Jaroslaw Kaczyński, said on Saturday. "Today, the government has decided on a regulation that prohibits the entry, importation of grain into Poland, but also dozens of other types of food (from Ukraine)," Kaczyński said during the PiS party convention. The list of these goods will be included in the government regulation, and there are goods "from grain to honey products, very, very many things," he added. But it is the duty of every state, every authority, good authority in any case, to protect the interests of its citizens," Kaczyński said. Kaczyński said Poland was ready to start talks with Ukraine to settle the grain issue and the Ukrainian side had already been notified of the decisions of the Polish government.

☆ Amazon Union President Chris Smalls Seen Fighting Worker in Video
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-12 | by ( Katherine Long | Jack Newsham | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +27 min

On the night of December 5, the president of the Amazon Labor Union pummeled another union member. Some longtime Amazon Labor Union organizers decided to begin organizing on their own, without Smalls. All three said they believe in Smalls' mission and support the goals of the Amazon Labor Union, but worry about Smalls' ability to lead. Amazon Labor Union members consoled each other after the union lost the vote at its second warehouse, LDJ5, last April. One purpose of the organization appears to be to raise funds for the Amazon Labor Union, according to its certificate of incorporation.

☆ Poland aims to set up Abrams tank service centre for Europe
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

WARSAW, April 12 (Reuters) - Poland aims to become the service centre for U.S.-made Abrams tanks in Europe, Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said on Wednesday during a visit to the United States. "I want a service centre for Abrams tanks for the whole of Europe, for maintaining their battle readiness, to be located in Poland. "We are also striving for the production of depleted uranium ammunition cores for the Abrams to be located in Poland." Poland, a close ally of the United States within NATO, has ordered 250 state-of-the-art Abrams battle tanks in addition to 116 modernised ones. "...I have confirmation that by June at the latest 14 Abrams tanks will be delivered to Poland...", he said, adding that these would replace Soviet-era tanks his country had donated to Ukraine to help fight off Russia's invasion.

☆ Central Europe's policymakers double down on hawkish message
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-07 | by ( Jan Lopatka | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

As central Europe's central banks were faster than their major peers to hike rates, they had also been expected to lead the way in easing. That message was underlined on Thursday when February data showed industrial wage growth in the double digits. "We do not expect a rate hike," it said after the Czech policy meeting last week. CEE inflation pushing past a peakThe Polish central bank also struck somewhat hawkish tones at its news conference on Thursday after holding rates steady. Romania's central bank left rates unchanged on Tuesday and said inflation may come down faster than previously thought.

☆ Acting CEO of Poland's biggest bank PKO BP resigns
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-06 | by ( Patrycja Zaras | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

April 6 (Reuters) - Poland's biggest bank PKO BP's (PKO.WA) acting Chief Executive Pawel Gruza will step down from his role on April 12, the bank said on Thursday. Gruza had been awaiting approval from the country's regulator (KNF) to take over the CEO role ever since he was appointed acting CEO on Aug. 9. The gave no reason on Thursday for his decision to step down as acting CEO. The move marks the fourth departure at the top of PKO BP since May 2021, when Zbigniew Jagiello surprised the market by resigning as chief executive after 12 years at the helm. Since his departure, PKO BP has already had three CEOS: Jan Emeryk Rosciszewski, followed by Iwona Duda and then acting chief Gruza.

☆ Ukraine pushes for Western warplane 'coalition'
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-06 | by ( Pavel Polityuk | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

[1/5] A MiG-29 and F-35 planes are parked on a tarmac during a NATO media event at an airbase in Malbork, Poland, March 21, 2023. During a visit to Warsaw on Wednesday, Zelenskiy said Poland had been instrumental in getting Western allies to send battle tanks to Ukraine and he believed it could play the same role in a "planes coalition". MACRON IN CHINAEuropean Union executive head Ursula von der Leyen and French President Emmanuel Macron are expected to discuss Ukraine during talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing on Thursday. The U.S. and NATO have said China is considering sending arms to Russia, which Beijing has denied. 'SHOULDER TO SHOULDER'Polish President Andrzej Duda said Warsaw was working to secure additional security guarantees for Ukraine at a NATO summit to be held in Lithuania in July.

☆ Polish agriculture minister resigns amid anger over Ukrainian grain imports
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

WARSAW, April 5 (Reuters) - Polish Agriculture Minister Henryk Kowalczyk resigned from his post on Wednesday amid rising anger among farmers over the impact of Ukrainian grain imports on prices. Kowalczyk said he decided to quit the position due to the European Commission's decision to extend duty free imports for Ukrainain grain until June 2024. Polish farmers had called for the introduction of tariffs. "As it is clear that this demand will not be met by the European Commission at this point, I decided to resign from the post of agriculture minister," Kowalczk said. The prime ministers of five states including Poland wrote to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Friday to demand action on Ukrainian agricultural imports.

☆ Polish central bank leaves main interest rate unchanged
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-05 | by ( Anna Wlodarczak-Semczuk | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WARSAW, April 5 (Reuters) - Poland's central bank held its main interest rate at 6.75% on Wednesday, as expected, and said it believes weakening gross domestic product growth, together with already implemented rate hikes, would help gradually curb inflation. The central bank's Monetary Policy Council now hopes that the rate hikes it has already implemented will see price growth return to single digits before the end of the year. Central bank governor Adam Glapinski has previously said that he expects inflation to fall to single digits around the beginning of September, paving the way for interest rate cuts in the fourth quarter. Investors are now waiting for more insight into the central bank's thinking when Glapinski holds a news conference on Thursday. On Tuesday, Romania's central bank kept its benchmark interest rate at 7.00%.

☆ Poland to send Ukraine four MiG-29 jets in coming days
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] A Polish Air Force MiG-29 aircraft fires flares during a performance at the Radom Air Show at an airport in Radom August 24, 2013. REUTERS/Kacper PempelWARSAW, March 16 (Reuters) - Poland will send Ukraine four MiG-29 fighter jets in coming days, the president said on Thursday, making it the first of Kyiv's allies to provide such aircraft. One of Ukraine's staunchest supporters, Warsaw has taken a leading role in persuading sometimes hesitant allies to provide Kyiv with heavy weaponry. NATO allies in the former communist east such as Poland and Slovakia have been particularly vocal supporters of Kyiv since Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022. Slovakia has also been considering whether to send MiG-29s to Ukraine but has yet to reach a decision.

☆ Poland may give Ukraine MiG-29 jets in next 4-6 weeks, says PM
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

WARSAW, March 14 (Reuters) - Poland could give Ukraine MiG-29 fighter jets in the coming four to six weeks, Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said on Tuesday, suggesting that Kyiv's allies were moving closer to an agreement on the next step in their military support for the country. Poland has said it would be prepared to send Soviet-designed MiG-29 jets to Ukraine as part of a coalition of countries. "That could happen in the coming 4-6 weeks," Morawiecki told a news conference when asked how long it could be before Warsaw supplies the aircraft. Nad said the time had come also for Slovakia to make a decision on whether or not to send jets to Ukraine. Poland has sent 14 German-made Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine.

☆ Polish central bank governor hopes to cut rates in fourth quarter
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

WARSAW, March 9 (Reuters) - The National Bank of Poland could cut interest rates in the fourth quarter of 2023, Poland's central bank governor said on Thursday, adding that he expected inflation to fall into single digits around September. "I hope that it will be possible to cut rates in the final quarter (of this year), but this is my opinion," Adam Glapinski told a news conference. On Wednesday, Poland's central bank slightly lowered its inflation forecasts for the coming three years, reinforcing expectations that interest rates will remain at current levels after it left them unchanged for a sixth consecutive month. Glapinski said he expected inflation would peak in February at around 18.5% and would then fall to single digits at the turn of August and September. Reporting by Pawel Florkiewicz, Anna Koper, Anna Wlodarczak-Semczuk, Alan Charlish; Editing by Alison WilliamsOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Polish c.bank governor Glapinski to hold press conference on Thursday
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

WARSAW, March 6 (Reuters) - Polish central bank governor Adam Glapinski will hold a press conference at 1400 GMT on Thursday, the bank said on Monday. Poland's Monetary Policy Council (MPC) meets to decide on interest rates on Tuesday and Wednesday. Reporting by Pawel FlorkiewiczOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Polish mayor targeted by Pegasus spyware-media
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-03 | by ( Caitlin Tremblay | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WARSAW, March 3 (Reuters) - An opposition-linked Polish mayor had his phone hacked using Pegasus spyware, Gazeta Wyborcza daily reported on Friday, amid allegations that the country's special services have used the technology against government opponents. It said that his number appeared on a list that it had access to as part of the investigative journalism initiative the Pegasus Project. Polish government spokesman Piotr Muller told private broadcaster RMF FM that he did not know about actions taken by special services concerning specific individuals, but that no laws had been broken. A spokesman for the Polish security services could not immediately be reached for comment. NSO has said it cannot confirm or deny any existing or potential customers for Pegasus.

☆ Poland has delivered tanks to Ukraine, government announces on war's first anniversary
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

WARSAW, Feb 24 (Reuters) - Poland has delivered four Leopard tanks to Ukraine already and is prepared to deliver more quickly, Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said on Friday, as Western nations increase their support to Kyiv a year after Russia invaded the country. We will definitely not leave you, we will support Ukraine until complete victory over Russia," Morawiecki said during a visit to Kyiv, standing next to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy. Warsaw's commitment to its neighbour has been instrumental in persuading European allies to donate heavy weapons to Ukraine, including tanks, a move opposed by several governments, including Berlin, until recently. Poland said last month it aimed to get training time for Ukrainian soldiers on Leopard 2 tanks down to five weeks. Reporting by Marek Strzelecki, Anna Koper, Pawel Florkiewicz Editing by Alex Richardson, Tomasz Janowski and Frances KerryOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

WARSAW, Feb 22 (Reuters) - U.S. President Joe Biden will meet leaders of NATO's eastern flank on Wednesday to show support for their security after Moscow suspended a landmark nuclear arms control treaty. Hours earlier, Putin delivered lengthy remarks laden with criticism of the Western powers, blaming them for the war in Ukraine. At the meeting, Biden plans to reaffirm commitments over their security and discuss support for Ukraine before he returns to Washington. "Lithuania and other like-minded countries have several requests, which concern air defence, forward defence presence, air defence systems, and greater investments in the defence industry," Asta Skaisgiryte said. The former Soviet republic on Russia's doorstep joined NATO in 2004 and plans to host Biden in July for the security alliance's leaders' summit.

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