Tusk after meeting with von der Leyen. My government has applied for payment from the KPO

On Friday, in Brussels, on the occasion of the European Council summit, a meeting was held between Prime Minister Donald Tusk and the head of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen. After the meeting, the politicians spoke together at a short press briefing, during which they announced that the Polish government had submitted an application for the payment of KPO.

Meeting of Donald Tusk and Ursula von der Leyen

Ursula von der Leyen thanked Donald Tusk for his personal commitment and determination to resolve all reservations regarding the Polish rule of law expressed by the European Commission and the CJEU. She also expressed satisfaction with the decision to join Poland to the European Public Prosecutor’s Office.

– I am very pleased that we have received the first application for the payment of funds. We have to make up for lost time. I count on close cooperation, in particular on the achievement of milestones in the context of judicial independence, so that we can then make the first payment, said the head of the European Commission. – We will have to work hard, but given the actions you have taken so far and plan to take, I hope that we will solve these problems together. For too long, concerns about the rule of law have limited our ability to help Poland modernize its economy and carry out the ecological and digital transformation, she added.

She also announced the transfer of the first payment to Poland as part of the advance payment from the RePowerEu program.

– The Commission is ready to transfer EUR 5 billion to Poland as pre-financing, i.e. as an advance payment. This will help Poland carry out decarbonization work and fight climate change, as this is one of the most important priorities for all of us. We need Poland to work with us in this area, said von der Leyen. – I would like to end by wishing you and your government complete success. You can be absolutely confident that the Commission is on your side, she added at the end.

Tusk:

Donald Tusk then spoke and first thanked Ursula von der Leyen for her kind words. – Everyone who knows Polish realities knows that it has been a long time since we had such a loyal spokesperson for Polish affairs as the President of the European Commission – he said.

He then talked about EU funds for Poland.

– While we are happy today that this avalanche of decisions has started, that the money is the first and that it is big, that the Polish government has finally submitted the application, we remember that money was not the most important thing here. It’s about the rule of law, it’s about Poland’s place in Europe, it’s about common values ​​- said the Polish Prime Minister. – Today we are saying that this positive process has started, that European money, i.e. our money, is starting to flow to Poland. This is, of course, the Commission’s decision, these are the efforts that the new government immediately undertook, but in fact the main authors of this success are all those in Poland who did not give up in the fight for a law-abiding Poland, for the rule of law – he added.

Tusk confirmed that the Polish government had submitted an application for the payment of funds from the KPO. – My government submitted applications for KPO payments today. As Madam President has already said, by the end of this year, we might say symbolically for Christmas, we will receive the first EUR 5 billion. This is not just a gift, this is serious money earmarked for our energy sovereignty and we will try to spend this money very quickly and wisely, he said.

A photo of the signed application was also posted by the Minister of Funds and Regional Policy, Katarzyna Pełczyńska-Nałęcz. “Good news from Donald Tusk from Brussels. On behalf of Polish citizens, I signed an application for the first payment for EUR 6.9 billion from the KPO. We are also waiting for an advance payment of EUR 5 billion,” she wrote on the X website.

Tusk also announced that an advance payment of EUR 5 billion from the RePowerEu program will be paid by the end of the year.

– I would like to thank you very much once again for everything you did in difficult circumstances – Tusk said to von der Leyen. – When there is good will, mutual trust, and in our case we can talk about personal friendship, it obviously makes work easier. But the key was to restore the rule of law in Poland. Without this, the Commission would not have decided to make the first payments, he emphasized.

The Polish Prime Minister also announced the success on social media. “Our money has finally started! Good morning, PLN 22 billion, this year! An application for another 30 has already been submitted. CDN,” he wrote on the X website.