2024-10-10 15:14 update: 2024-10-12, 14:23
Photo PAP/Radek Pietruszka
The behaviour of Polish President Andrzej Duda, who continues to obstruct the appointment of ambassadors to the US, Israel, Ukraine or NATO, has been described as "highly irresponsible" by Prime Minister Donald Tusk.
Tusk addressed the disagreement with Duda regarding the replacement of numerous ambassadors following the change of government on the X platform on Thursday.
"The fact that President Duda continues to block ambassador appointments to the US, Israel, Ukraine or NATO is highly irresponsible," wrote Tusk. "I made requests. I tried to explain, yet all my efforts were in vain," he wrote.
"I acknowledge that there are only 299 days remaining (until the end of Duda's final term - PAP)," he added. "However, that is still 299 days too many. Security, Mr. President!"
Later on Thursday, Duda replied on X: "Prime Minister Donald Tusk is manipulating the situation." The president claimed that Poland had ambassadors to the US and Ukraine because he had never dismissed them.
"The problem is that Donald Tusk and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs forced them to leave the embassies and are preventing them from performing their tasks," he wrote, adding that Tusk was responsible for the absence of the ambassadors.
The former ambassadors were replaced by the foreign ministry's nominees who act as charges d'affaires, since they cannot hold the official title of ambassador. Diplomatic missions which did not have ambassadors in recent years are also run by charges d'affaires nominated by the new government.
Shortly after his appointment, Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski announced he would end the mission of over 50 ambassadors and withdraw several candidacies submitted by the previously ruling, now the main opposition party Law and Justice (PiS).
According to the law, ambassadors are appointed and dismissed by the president, however Duda, a strong PiS ally, says he will not agree to the dismissal of ambassadors put forward by the government. (PAP)
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