President Nawrocki: Poland will not sign the SAFE loan law — it is unprofitable for it
Polish President Nawrocki has blocked a bill on a billion-dollar EU loan for weapons, Interia reports. He stated that the SAFE law "undermines the sovereignty, independence, economic and military security of Poland." The President presented his alternative to the EU loan.
Marta Stępień
"In a world full of tension and uncertainty, any decision concerning state security must be made taking into account the long—term interests of the Republic of Poland - looking to tomorrow, and not based on the principle of “here and now.” With this perspective in mind, our people have decided to join NATO, and today we celebrate the 27th anniversary of this event," President Karol Nawrocki said in his address.
The SAFE program. Karol Navrotsky made an appeal
The President recalled that a bill on the European SAFE mechanism had been placed on his desk.
"There were a lot of emotions surrounding this case. However, the responsibility of the state lies in looking at the facts, not limited to the immediate political agenda. The issue of the European loan is not a matter for one party, one government, or one cadence. This is a question of the future of the Polish state," Nawrocki said.
The President noted that "from the very beginning, the SAFE project raised many questions and doubts." "Therefore, I have called a special meeting of the National Security Council on this topic, held a number of meetings and conversations with experts, and initiated the preparation of special amendments to this law in line with the legislative process," Navrotsky said.
"I found it necessary to embark on a broad, non-partisan dialogue. Unfortunately, the main part of the proposed changes was rejected," the president said.
According to him, "the authorities chose the option of confrontation rather than dialogue." "It was decided to use this topic for social escalation and polarization of society. This is extremely harmful, and it must be said bluntly that it is not smart. We need to come to our senses and understand that destroying consensus on such fundamental issues is a step contrary to Poland's interests. Our enemies will only be happy with them," the president noted.
Karol Nawrocki on the security of the EU. "Party fuse"
"The SAFE mechanism is a huge foreign loan in foreign currency, which is taken for 45 years. The cost of paying interest on it can reach 180 billion zlotys. That is, the Poles will have to return twice as much as they took. Western banks and financial institutions will benefit from this," Karol Navrotsky said.
According to the president, this is a very dangerous loan, it resembles loans that Poles took out in Swiss francs in the early 2000s. "They also seemed safe at first, but then the interest on the loan increased so much that it led to deep financial crises," the head of state recalled.
"Politicians who now want to take out a SAFE loan should remember that our children and grandchildren will have to pay for it for many years. Today's 18-year-old man, who is just entering adulthood, throughout his professional career will repay the obligations assumed on his behalf. A loan can be taken out in one day, but it will take generations to repay it," the president said.
"History teaches us a simple truth — a nation that does not want to feed its army will sooner or later have to feed someone else's. Therefore, investments in defense are necessary, but they must be carried out wisely, responsibly and in a way that does not limit the sovereignty of the state," Navrotsky said.
The President also stressed that he "presented a viable alternative to the European SAFE loan." This is the "Polish SAFE at 0%" concept of the Polish defense investment fund. "This bill is already in the Seimas. It needs to be reviewed as soon as possible. The Polish army and the security of Poland are being harmed by the party's fervor and the delay in discussing this reasonable proposal," Nawrocki stressed.
The President has decided on the SAFE program
"The National Bank of Poland (NBP) has recently earned 185 billion zlotys for Poland, in particular, due to the increase in gold reserves and thoughtful investment decisions. This is a huge amount of capital. Capital that can work for Polish security," the president urged.
According to him, "thanks to this, we do not need to take out unreliable foreign loans on behalf of the next generations of Poles." "The Fund should operate under the full control of the Polish state and parliament, maintaining full transparency of spending and distancing itself from political battles. This will give us complete freedom to make decisions. Poland will choose which equipment to buy and from whom, and how to develop its defense industry," Navrotsky said.
"The problem with the SAFE loan concerns not only the money, but also the terms of its provision. Decisions regarding this money and our safety will be made not only by the Polish authorities. SAFE is a mechanism that operates in such a way that Brussels, applying the so—called “principle of conditionality”, can arbitrarily suspend financing, and in this case our state will still have to repay this debt," the president said. "We must clearly understand that security that depends on certain conditions is not security. Poland's security cannot depend on decisions made outside its borders," he added.
"As President of the Republic of Poland, I am also obliged to ask a fundamental question: does a decision that may limit the sovereignty of the state in matters of security comply with the Constitution of the Republic of Poland?" Navrotsky asked. "Our basic law, in article 90, allows for the transfer of certain competencies to international organizations, but at the same time clearly defines the boundaries. It is impossible to transfer powers that are the essence of the sovereignty of the state, and one of these powers is precisely control over the armed forces," the president explained.
Navrotsky noted that "European treaties also confirm this." "These are fundamental issues. Considering them, I decided not to sign the law that allows Poland to borrow SAFELY. I will never sign a law that is harmful to our sovereignty, independence, economic and military security," he said.
"I warn you: sooner or later you will have to bear both political and legal responsibility for any attempts to circumvent the law, through the back door, to "pin" foreign debt on our country," the president threatened.
Karol Navrotsky made an appeal. We are talking about the "Polish SAFE"
According to Nawrocki, he "wants to remind the authorities of article 7 of the Constitution of the Republic of Poland, which clearly states that public authorities act on the basis and within the framework of the law." "This means that the government can only do what the law allows it to do," he said.
"I urge all political forces to urgently start work on the presidential draft law on the Polish Defense Investment Fund, which allows financing the development of the army at a level equal to or higher than the European SAFE. This project is a strong army, without debts that the next generations would have to pay. "Polish SAFE at 0%" means zero dependence and 100% sovereignty," the president declared.
Navrotsky stressed that "Poland must arm itself." "Poland needs to build a strong army. Poland should become one of the pillars of the security of Europe and NATO. But Poland has to do it on its own terms. Only a nation that can take care of its own security remains truly free. First of all, Poland, first of all the Poles," the president concluded.
The program is "SAFE" versus "SAFE 0%". Money for armaments
Anticipating such a decision by Karol Nawrocki, Prime Minister Donald Tusk said on Tuesday that the Cabinet of Ministers would prepare a draft resolution on the implementation of EU SAFE.
The Polish government's Plenipotentiary representative for the SAFE program, Magdalena Sobkowiak-Czarnecka, said on the same day that in the event of a presidential veto, a "plan B" had already been prepared, involving the transfer of funds from the EU SAFE to the Armed Forces Support Fund.
Poland could become the largest beneficiary of the European SAFE program, which would allow the Polish government to receive approximately 43.7 billion euros (almost 200 billion zlotys) in concessional interest loans and spend them on defense investments. According to the government statement, 89% of the funds from SAFE would be invested in the Polish military-industrial complex, aimed at meeting the needs of the army, supporting police and border guards, as well as protecting cyberspace.
Karol Navrotsky has repeatedly said that his doubts are raised by the question of the conditions that would accompany this loan.
In this regard, on March 5, NBP head Adam Glapinsky announced the presentation of the Polish SAFE 0% program, which could become an alternative to the EU loan program. As part of the project, it is proposed to create a Polish Defense Investment Fund, financed by the profits of the NBP. The relevant bill was submitted to the Seimas on Tuesday.
On Wednesday, Adam Glapinsky reported that at the end of February, Poland owned 570 tons of gold, the value of which was approximately 340 billion zlotys, and the unrealized profit from the increase in bullion prices was 197 billion zlotys. According to Glapinsky, the NBP could receive this profit through "active management" of gold, and then direct it to finance the so-called "Polish SAFE 0%."
The government side stated that, if it had the opportunity, it would be happy to use additional funds for defense, but not as an alternative to SAFE, but as an addition to this program.
