When asked what is at stake in the upcoming Polish parliamentary elections, the answer is simple: the future of Poland. Should the ruling Law and Justice (PiS) party win a third term, it will complete a process of state capture and set Poland on the path to becoming a fully-fledged autocracy, writes Eugeniusz Smolar in an op-ed for New Eastern Europe.

There seems to be a widespread inability in Germany to look at oneself from the position of others and to accept the intricacies of history and memory and their influence on the present. But it is not only the perception of place in the past that is the problem. For some in Germany everything east of the Oder river today is still lumped together as “Eastern Europe”.

February 24th 1940, the concentration camp of Hohenbruch in East Prussia: on the eve of his 50th birthday, the Polish publisher, writer and activist Seweryn Pieniężny Jr. is beaten up, forced to dig his own grave and then, in his underwear, shot by Nazi guards. According to the writer Eugeniusz Tryniszewski, who published a short biography of Seweryn in 1987, his last words, shouted in German so his executors would understand, were “Noch ist Polen nicht verloren!”, Poland has not yet perished – the first line of the Polish national anthem.

Numerous tensions, deepened by Russia’s war with Ukraine, high inflation and the energy crisis, generate our anxiety about the future of the European project. Especially as the proposals that are put forward may actually lead to a greater fragmentation and further “unsealing” of the European Union. This, in turn, can only impede its further development.

An interview with Paweł Jabłoński, Undersecretary of State at the Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Interviewer: James Jackson.

The anti-European and anti-Teutonic phobias of the ruling party are perilous for Polish interests.

The end of the balance of power in the EU with policies decided by so-called “old Europe” could be one key consequence of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. This ongoing shift needs to result in a strategic alliance between Poland and Germany. However, is this possible?

Over 30 years have passed since Germany reunified and signed a pivotal agreement on bilateral affairs with Poland. Meant to signal the start of a new age of co-operation, the treaty’s spirit has nonetheless been challenged by numerous issues both old and new. A renewed agreement is now needed to build a shared future free from the ghosts of the past.

The future of NATO’s nuclear sharing programme in Central and Eastern Europe is closely connected to the political relationship between Washington, Berlin and Warsaw. Dimensions such as geopolitics and infrastructure must also be taken into account.  

Gryfino is a town on Poland's north-western border with Germany. Twice a year it gathers Polish and German runners who cross the border together.

There was once a time in which both Poles and Germans were suspicious of one another. But today mutually beneficial relations prevail in the Pomeranian borderlands, proving that integration is possible and ideal.

Following the First World War, the new border established between Poland and Germany, finally implemented in 1921, stretched from the Upper Silesian Coal Basin all the way to the Baltic Sea. The border, however, remained a primary source of conflict; especially as the political decisions of the Weimar Republic allowed for a revision of the Versailles Treaty. Today it is the focus of a joint Polish-German project.

Only during concerts would he receive applause like this. Ignacy Jan Paderewski, a pianist and composer, arrived in Poznań on December 26th 1918 (18 days after the end of the First World War) and was greeted with much excitement by the Poles. Earlier, he had played a concert at the White House in Washington, DC and met with the US President Woodrow Wilson, whom he tried to convince that an independent Polish state had to be created. It was still yet unclear as to where exactly the borders of this state would lie.

For 25 years, Warsaw and Berlin have shared a ride in the same car, often on rocky and bumpy roads, but mostly agreeing on the route. Since Law and Justice (PiS) took power, Chancellor Angela Merkel has observed the developments from a distance, rarely speaking out, unlike many other European Union officials. Over the past 14 months of PiS’s rule, however, some advancements took on an extreme character, and the Polish-German car seemed to have hit an icy patch with the breaks failing. Chancellor Merkel seems to agree that a longer stay in a garage should be prevented, and paid Poland a flying visit on Tuesday last week.