Expats

Polish president will accept Ukraine's invitation - on condition [May 11, 2012] Warsaw/Kiev (dpa) - Polish President Bronislaw Komorowski was ready to accept an invitation from his Ukrainian counterpart, but only if Kiev made a "new decision" in the case of imprisoned former premier Yulia Tymoshenko, the Foreign Ministry said Thursday."If there is no change (in Tymoshenko?s case) then the invitation (from Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych) will not be accepted," said ... [via YahooNews] More >>

Poland's Kaczynski changes mind, will run for president in 2015 [Apr 06, 2012] Warsaw (dpa) - Poland?s Jaroslaw Kaczynski, head of the right-wing Law and Justice party, said Friday he had decided to run in the 2015 presidential elections, at the behest of party members."I am under pressure from my party," the opposition leader told TVN 24. "I have changed my mind."Kaczynski?s announcement came days before the second anniversary of the plane crash in Russia that killed his ... [via YahooNews] More >>

Poland needs further reforms to increase growth, OECD report says [Mar 28, 2012] Warsaw (dpa) - Poland needs to implement key reforms to raise its growth prospects amid a slowing European economy, said a report released Wednesday by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD.)"Poland is well-equipped to deal with the slowdown," said Angel Gurria, the secretary-general of the Paris-based economic think-tank. "It can move in the right direction by cutting ... [via YahooNews] More >>

Report: Former Polish spy chief charged over CIA secret prisons [Mar 27, 2012] Warsaw (dpa) - Former Polish intelligence chief Zbigniew Siemiatkowski has been charged for his role in helping the CIA set up secret detention cells for suspected terrorists, the leading Wyborcza newspaper reported on Tuesday.The newspaper said Siemiatkowski had confirmed that he had been charged in connection with the probe into the so-called black sites in north-eastern Poland.Siemiatkowski ... [via YahooNews] More >>

LEAD: Germany's Gauck says visiting Poland first was from "heart" Eds: Adds meeting with Tusk, visit to parliament ... [Mar 27, 2012] Warsaw (dpa) - German President Joachim Gauck said Tuesday his choice of Poland as the destination for his first official foreign trip was a "decision of the heart" as he pledged to maintain good relations between the nations, despite a strained common history."There were, of course, political reasons. However, it was a decision of the heart," Gauck said in Warsaw after a meeting with Polish ... [via YahooNews] More >>

Germany's Gauck: decision to visit Poland first came from "heart" Eds: epa photos [Mar 27, 2012] Warsaw (dpa) - New German President Joachim Gauck said Tuesday his choice of Poland as the destination for his first official foreign trip was a "decision of the heart" as he pledged to maintain good relations between the nations, despite a strained common history."There were, of course, political reasons. However, it was a decision of the heart," Gauck said in Warsaw after a meeting with Polish ... [via YahooNews] More >>

New German President Joachim Gauck arrives in Poland [Mar 26, 2012] Warsaw (dpa) - New German President Joachim Gauck arrived in Poland on Monday night on his first official foreign visit since he assumed office last week.Gauck has said he would focus on Polish-German relations during his presidency."We are united by stronger and stronger ties," Gauck told the Polish daily Wyborcza on Monday. "The fact that Germany and Poland can be partners, and even friends ... [via YahooNews] More >>

Poland's Lech Walesa asks pope to support a free Cuba [Mar 22, 2012] Warsaw (dpa) - Former Polish labour union leader Lech Walesa has written to Pope Benedict XVI asking him to support Cuban political prisoners and activists during his upcoming visit to the Communist country, local media reported on Thursday."Your Holiness, please speak up for those who get sent to prison for their beliefs," wrote Walesa, who lead protests in the 1980s that helped topple Poland?s ... [via YahooNews] More >>

New survey finds Poland has less shale gas reserves [Mar 21, 2012] Warsaw (dpa) - Poland has some 346 billion to 768 billion cubic metres of recoverable shale gas reserves, much less than previous estimates, the Polish Geological Institute said on Wednesday.The new forecast was about ten times lower than previous estimates. The US Department of Energy had estimated last year that Poland had as much as 5.3 trillion cubic metres of shale gas.The reserves would ... [via YahooNews] More >>

Polish financial, energy sectors on tap for investment [Mar 20, 2012] Warsaw (dpa) - Poland?s financial and energy sectors are set to receive some 500 to 600 million euros (661.7 million to 794 million dollars) in investment via the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the bank?s head said Tuesday in Warsaw."In the years to come, there will be two sectors standing out: the financial sector, especially with the aim to deepen the capital market of this ... [via YahooNews] More >>

Seven Polish soldiers to take stand for attack on Afghan village [Mar 07, 2012] Warsaw (dpa) - Seven Polish soldiers who were acquitted in June of war crimes for an attack on an Afghan village that killed eight civilians were to take the stand Wednesday during a new trial in Poland?s highest court.The trial, which began on Tuesday, was "unprecedented" and was being "observed around the world," daily Wyborcza wrote.The soldiers were part of the NATO-led international force ... [via YahooNews] More >>

Seven Polish soldiers retried for attack on Afghan village [Mar 07, 2012] Warsaw (dpa) - Seven Polish soldiers who were acquitted in June of war crimes for an attack on an Afghan village that killed eight civilians faced a new trial in Poland?s highest court on Tuesday.The soldiers were part of the NATO-led international force in Afghanistan at the time of the attack in southeastern Paktika province on August 16, 2007.Women and children were among the dead.The ... [via YahooNews] More >>

Polish premier pledges continued support for Belarusian opposition [Feb 29, 2012] Warsaw (dpa) - Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk on Wednesday called on the people of Belarus to "be strong" in the face of fresh European Union sanctions and pledged continued support for its opposition."I want to say a few words to Belarusians: be strong, and hang on," Tusk, speaking in Belarusian, said at a press conference in Warsaw. "Long live Belarus."The EU on Tuesday imposed travel bans ... [via YahooNews] More >>

Polish prime minister debates anti-piracy treaty with bloggers [Feb 06, 2012] Warsaw (dpa) - Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk debated a controversial internet anti-piracy treaty with activists and bloggers on Monday, after massive protests pushed him to halt the ratification of the agreement last week.Tusk said Poland would not withdraw its signature from the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA), which it signed last month, simply because "some group demands it."A ... [via YahooNews] More >>

Polish party to put mask on statute of Christ in internet protest [Jan 30, 2012] Warsaw (dpa) - Poland?s liberal Palikot?s Movement party will put a Guy Fawkes mask on the country?s giant statue of Jesus Christ to protest at an internet anti-piracy treaty, party leader Janusz Palikot said Monday.Palikot said he would continue protests against the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) by putting the grinning black-and-white mask on the giant statue in Swiebodzin, which ... [via YahooNews] More >>

Polish GDP rose 4.3 per cent in 2011 [Jan 27, 2012] Warsaw (dpa) - Poland?s economy grew 4.3 per cent, compared to 3.9 per cent in 2010, the Central Statistical Office said Friday in a sign the country had maintained robust growth."This is a very good result. It means that we really have had a very good year behind us," Anna Zielinska-Glebocka, of the Polish central bank?s Monetary Policy Council, told TVN 24.Strong retail sales and public ... [via YahooNews] More >>

ANALYSIS: Despite crisis, Poland scored victories with EU presidency By Dominika Maslikowski, dpa Eds: Poland's 6 ... [Dec 28, 2011] Warsaw (dpa) - Poland took over the rotating presidency of the European Union as enthusiasm for the bloc waned amid the financial crisis, but analysts say it managed to chalk up some success despite difficult circumstances.Poland "seized the opportunity" arising from one of the "most challenging periods" in the history of the bloc, European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso noted recently ... [via YahooNews] More >>

Soldiers' death rekindles Polish debate on Afghanistan Eds: epa photos available [Dec 24, 2011] Warsaw (dpa) - Five Polish soldiers killed in Afghanistan were buried on Christmas Eve amid a renewed debate on Poland?s involvement in the Asian country?s conflict against Taliban insurgents.The opposition liberal Palikot?s Movement party has called for Poland to immediately withdraw from the war-torn country."It should have been done long ago," party head Janusz Palikot said after the deaths ... [via YahooNews] More >>

Poland's Tusk mourns Havel as a national hero [Dec 20, 2011] Warsaw (dpa) - Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk on Tuesday paid tribute to Czech former president Vaclav Havel, saying his country was mourning the pro-democracy activist as a Polish national hero."For us, there has departed not only a great Czech, but in a sense also a great Pole and certainly a great European," Tusk said after signing a condolence book at the Czech Embassy in Warsaw.Tusk said ... [via YahooNews] More >>

REFILE : Poland's Tusk defends backing EU treaty Eds: Clarifies author of quote in graf 5 [Dec 15, 2011] Warsaw (dpa) - Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk on Thursday defended his government?s backing of an EU treaty for closer fiscal union, during a debate in parliament where his government faced a no-confidence motion by the right-wing opposition.Tusk said it was in Poland?s "direct interest" to save the eurozone from the debt crisis engulfing the bloc. "You don?t have to be an economist to see ... [via YahooNews] More >>