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| Poland Opposes 2nd Term for Donald Tusk, an Ex-Premier, to Lead E.U. Council | Poland Opposes 2nd Term for Donald Tusk, an Ex-Premier, to Lead E.U. Council |
| (about 7 hours later) | |
| WARSAW — Only one country in the European Union has publicly opposed the reappointment of Donald Tusk as president of the European Council: his own. | WARSAW — Only one country in the European Union has publicly opposed the reappointment of Donald Tusk as president of the European Council: his own. |
| Mr. Tusk was Poland’s prime minister for seven years, until 2014, when he was chosen to lead the Council, which helps set the bloc’s agenda. He was a driving force in last year’s deal with Turkey to address the migration crisis, and he has coordinated the European Union’s response to Britain’s plan to withdraw. | |
| But the right-wing government that took power in Poland in 2015 wants him out of the job. It has even suggested — without evidence — that he has betrayed his country. | But the right-wing government that took power in Poland in 2015 wants him out of the job. It has even suggested — without evidence — that he has betrayed his country. |
| The dispute has injected a note of high drama as leaders of the bloc’s 28 members gather in Brussels on Thursday for a summit meeting where Mr. Tusk’s future is on the agenda. | The dispute has injected a note of high drama as leaders of the bloc’s 28 members gather in Brussels on Thursday for a summit meeting where Mr. Tusk’s future is on the agenda. |
| The situation is without precedent: Herman Van Rompuy, a former prime minister of Belgium, was selected unanimously in 2009, when the job was created, and again in 2012; Mr. Tusk’s appointment was also unanimous. | The situation is without precedent: Herman Van Rompuy, a former prime minister of Belgium, was selected unanimously in 2009, when the job was created, and again in 2012; Mr. Tusk’s appointment was also unanimous. |
| The expectation is to reach a decision by consensus, but if Poland forces the issue, the rules call for a system of weighted voting by the member countries. | The expectation is to reach a decision by consensus, but if Poland forces the issue, the rules call for a system of weighted voting by the member countries. |
| Prime Minister Joseph Muscat of Malta, which holds the six-month rotating presidency of the European Union, is expected to ask national leaders on Thursday afternoon if there are any objections to Mr. Tusk’s reappointment for a second term of two and a half years. That would give the Polish prime minister, Beata Szydlo, a chance to take the floor. | |
| Ms. Szydlo is expected to propose that Mr. Tusk be replaced by Jacek Saryusz-Wolski, a Polish member of the European Parliament since 2004 and, until recently, a member of Mr. Tusk’s political party, now the largest opposition group in Poland. | Ms. Szydlo is expected to propose that Mr. Tusk be replaced by Jacek Saryusz-Wolski, a Polish member of the European Parliament since 2004 and, until recently, a member of Mr. Tusk’s political party, now the largest opposition group in Poland. |
| The idea that Poland could try to force a different candidate for the job has been met with bewilderment, and even derision, in Brussels. Mr. Tusk has broad support among the national leaders, and some see Poland’s move as little more than a stunt. | The idea that Poland could try to force a different candidate for the job has been met with bewilderment, and even derision, in Brussels. Mr. Tusk has broad support among the national leaders, and some see Poland’s move as little more than a stunt. |
| There has been speculation, however, that Prime Minister Viktor Orban of Hungary, also a right-winger, could support Ms. Szydlo’s move. | There has been speculation, however, that Prime Minister Viktor Orban of Hungary, also a right-winger, could support Ms. Szydlo’s move. |
| Ms. Szydlo is not without options for embarrassing Mr. Tusk, if not for blocking his reappointment. | Ms. Szydlo is not without options for embarrassing Mr. Tusk, if not for blocking his reappointment. |
| She could call for a formal vote, though that is rare at the level of national leaders in the European Union. In 2014, when he was Britain’s prime minister, David Cameron demanded such a vote to register his opposition to the selection of Jean-Claude Juncker as president of the European Commission. Mr. Orban also voted against Mr. Juncker. | She could call for a formal vote, though that is rare at the level of national leaders in the European Union. In 2014, when he was Britain’s prime minister, David Cameron demanded such a vote to register his opposition to the selection of Jean-Claude Juncker as president of the European Commission. Mr. Orban also voted against Mr. Juncker. |
| Ms. Szydlo could abstain. Lithuania’s president did so in 2014 to express qualms about the confirmation of Federica Mogherini, an Italian diplomat, as the bloc’s foreign policy chief. | Ms. Szydlo could abstain. Lithuania’s president did so in 2014 to express qualms about the confirmation of Federica Mogherini, an Italian diplomat, as the bloc’s foreign policy chief. |
| Ms. Szydlo or other leaders could also push to delay the decision. But that would run the risk of worsening the perception, already widespread, that the European Union has become too hard to govern. | Ms. Szydlo or other leaders could also push to delay the decision. But that would run the risk of worsening the perception, already widespread, that the European Union has become too hard to govern. |
| Fabian Zuleeg, chief executive of the European Policy Center, a research organization in Brussels, said that a rebuff of Warsaw’s position would most likely be portrayed as a move for stability. | Fabian Zuleeg, chief executive of the European Policy Center, a research organization in Brussels, said that a rebuff of Warsaw’s position would most likely be portrayed as a move for stability. |
| “Nationalistic populism has a very domestic focus, but it also entails attacks on the European Union and what we’re seeing is a counterreaction to that,” he said. | “Nationalistic populism has a very domestic focus, but it also entails attacks on the European Union and what we’re seeing is a counterreaction to that,” he said. |
| If Mr. Tusk is reappointed, Mr. Zuleeg said, it might even help Warsaw in its off-and-on conflict with Brussels. “Having a candidate of your country appointed, who’s not supported by you, gives you another reason to claim that E.U. decisions aren’t legitimate, and that you’re defending Polish interests,” he said. | If Mr. Tusk is reappointed, Mr. Zuleeg said, it might even help Warsaw in its off-and-on conflict with Brussels. “Having a candidate of your country appointed, who’s not supported by you, gives you another reason to claim that E.U. decisions aren’t legitimate, and that you’re defending Polish interests,” he said. |
| The controversy is ultimately more about Polish politics — and the feud is personal. | The controversy is ultimately more about Polish politics — and the feud is personal. |
| Mr. Tusk was prime minister in 2010 when Lech Kaczynski, then the president of Poland, died in a plane crash in Smolensk, Russia, with 95 others. The former president’s twin brother, Jaroslaw Kaczynski, the leader of the right-wing Law and Justice Party that is now in power, has blamed Mr. Tusk mainly for not ensuring better security for the plane, but he has also hinted, more darkly, that Mr. Tusk may have plotted the crash with the Russian president, Vladimir V. Putin, who is said to have viewed Lech Kaczynski as a threat. | Mr. Tusk was prime minister in 2010 when Lech Kaczynski, then the president of Poland, died in a plane crash in Smolensk, Russia, with 95 others. The former president’s twin brother, Jaroslaw Kaczynski, the leader of the right-wing Law and Justice Party that is now in power, has blamed Mr. Tusk mainly for not ensuring better security for the plane, but he has also hinted, more darkly, that Mr. Tusk may have plotted the crash with the Russian president, Vladimir V. Putin, who is said to have viewed Lech Kaczynski as a threat. |
| Official investigations in Poland and Russia attributed the crash to pilot error, but Jaroslaw Kacyznski has persisted in raising alternative theories. | Official investigations in Poland and Russia attributed the crash to pilot error, but Jaroslaw Kacyznski has persisted in raising alternative theories. |
| “The Polish government cannot endorse someone so biased and disloyal toward his own country,” Ryszard Czarnecki, a Law and Justice official and vice president of the European Parliament, said in a phone interview. | “The Polish government cannot endorse someone so biased and disloyal toward his own country,” Ryszard Czarnecki, a Law and Justice official and vice president of the European Parliament, said in a phone interview. |
| Mr. Tusk criticized Law and Justice and threatened to take actions against the country if it refused to take in its share of refugees, Mr. Czarnecki said, adding, “We are not some yes-men who will agree to anything.” | Mr. Tusk criticized Law and Justice and threatened to take actions against the country if it refused to take in its share of refugees, Mr. Czarnecki said, adding, “We are not some yes-men who will agree to anything.” |
| In a letter to fellow leaders, posted online on Wednesday, Ms. Szydlo wrote: “President Tusk has failed to demonstrate adequate impartiality. He used his E.U. function to engage personally in a political dispute in Poland. We cannot accept such a conduct.” | In a letter to fellow leaders, posted online on Wednesday, Ms. Szydlo wrote: “President Tusk has failed to demonstrate adequate impartiality. He used his E.U. function to engage personally in a political dispute in Poland. We cannot accept such a conduct.” |
| But Ewa Kopacz, another former prime minister of Poland and a friend of Mr. Tusk’s, said in an interview that the dispute amounted to a vendetta. “It all comes down to personal vengeance and pettiness rather than constructive criticism,” she said, adding that the Polish dispute could not have come at a worse time for the European Union, as it debates its future. | But Ewa Kopacz, another former prime minister of Poland and a friend of Mr. Tusk’s, said in an interview that the dispute amounted to a vendetta. “It all comes down to personal vengeance and pettiness rather than constructive criticism,” she said, adding that the Polish dispute could not have come at a worse time for the European Union, as it debates its future. |
| As for Mr. Saryusz-Wolski, after he decided last week to challenge Mr. Tusk, he was excluded from both his party in Poland and from a faction in Brussels, the center-right European People’s Party Group, for which he once served as vice president. | As for Mr. Saryusz-Wolski, after he decided last week to challenge Mr. Tusk, he was excluded from both his party in Poland and from a faction in Brussels, the center-right European People’s Party Group, for which he once served as vice president. |
| He did not respond to a request for comment, though he has been active on Twitter, writing: “No government would allow itself to support a candidate who abuses its international position to actively instigate opposition against a democratic verdict.” | He did not respond to a request for comment, though he has been active on Twitter, writing: “No government would allow itself to support a candidate who abuses its international position to actively instigate opposition against a democratic verdict.” |
| Even Mr. Czarnecki concedes that the Polish government’s bid is a long shot. And in any case, “Whatever happens on Thursday,” he said, “I bet all my money that the next president of the European Council will be a Pole.” | Even Mr. Czarnecki concedes that the Polish government’s bid is a long shot. And in any case, “Whatever happens on Thursday,” he said, “I bet all my money that the next president of the European Council will be a Pole.” |