Opinion Lucinda Creighton: Donald Tusk looks to drag Poland out of the dark The Poles’ decision to eject the authoritarian populist PiS party from power shows that positive politics can trump negative nationalism
The Big Picture Vincent Boland: Tusk’s election victory will herald a welcome return for Poland to the centre of EuropeNo election in Europe in 2023 is more important than the one that just happened in Poland, where conservative Jarosław Kaczyński’s failure is good news for the country and Europe
Politics Polish opposition leader says ‘democracy has won’ as he claims election winDonald Tusk, former president of the EU Council, declared victory for his opposition coalition
The Big Picture Vincent Boland: Claptrap that immigrants pose an existential threat to western way of life has to be challengedAs Armenians flee Nagorno-Karabakh, it’s time to reiterate that properly integrated and settled, immigrants are an economic and social benefit to any country
Ukraine Dispatch from Donbas: The Russian shelling stops ‘only when it rains’ Sean Stark, a former US Marine, spent three weeks on the frontline in the Donbas region with a unit of other foreign fighters, under what he called ‘constant’ artillery attacks
War in Ukraine Escape from Ukraine: ‘I want to start a new life in Ireland – and to live a safe life there’In the Full Market centre in Rzeszow, Poland, Ukrainian refugees who are making their way further west – to Ireland and England – say they hope to make a fresh start for their families
War in Ukraine Jeff Farrell: In Poland, Ukrainians are torn by the dilemma of returning home or remaining in exileWeary of being displaced from their homeland for four months, many Ukrainian refugees are leaving Poland even as they are thankful for their neighbour’s hospitality in a time of war
Editorial: EU must tread carefully if it turns off Poland and Hungary’s funding tapOnly by being seen to be open and fair can the EU demonstrate to recalcitrant member states that their complaints about European overreach have no basis in fact
Editorial: Belarusian border misery is latest instance of EU refugee neurosisPoland’s refusal to allow aid to reach those massed on its eastern border risks handing a propaganda victory to the dictator Aleksandr Lukashenko
Lucinda Creighton: Von der Leyen must hold the line on Poland and HungarySitting back and doing nothing will only encourage other EU states to behave in the manner of the two recalcitrant eastern European nations
Polish and Hungarian muscle-flexing could endanger Europe’s recovery Integrating the EU’s recovery fund into the normal budgetary process opened the door for authoritarian regimes in eastern and central Europe to veto it. But the EU must stand firm