Following protests at his private residence in Sopot, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk condemned the actions while preparing to sign a landmark €43.7 billion EU defense agreement.
Protests at Tusk’s Sopot Residence
Protesters gathered on Thursday, May 7, in front of the Chancellery of the Prime Minister and Donald Tusk’s private apartment in Sopot. The exact address was published on social media, and the shared materials featured logos from the Gazeta Polska Clubs and Robert Bąkiewicz’s Border Defense Movement.
Tusk commented on the demonstrations, stating that a picket at a children’s playground under the windows of his family home in his absence is the “peak of courage.” He added that Nawrocki and Kaczyński are likely proud of their people’s “heroic action.”
Signing of the SAFE Agreement
On Friday, May 8, Tusk will participate in the signing of the SAFE agreement, making Poland the first EU country to sign. Poland is the largest beneficiary of the program, set to obtain approximately €43.7 billion, or nearly 190 billion PLN, to bolster military security, strengthen the economy, and create new jobs through increased orders for Polish factories.
The agreement will be signed by Defense Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz and Minister of Finance and Economy Andrzej Domański, alongside EU Commissioners Piotr Serafin and Andrius Kubilius.
Diplomatic Visits to the Vatican and Italy
On Thursday, May 7, Donald Tusk visited Italy and the Vatican, where he was received for an audience by Leon XIV. He also met with the Secretary of State of the Apostolic See, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, and the Secretary for Relations with States, Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, to discuss international affairs and the situation of the Church in Poland.
Tusk also met with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni at Palazzo Chigi. Meloni stated that both countries intend to consult on a new Polish-Italian treaty to replace the 1991 friendship agreement. She also thanked Poland for protecting the EU’s external border and for its solidarity with refugees from Ukraine.
