Nawrocki’s Budapest Trip Sparks Political Storm in Poland

Polish President Karol Nawrocki is scheduled to meet with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán in Budapest on Monday, a visit that has drawn sharp criticism from Poland’s Prime Minister Donald Tusk and Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski, according to reports from Polish news outlets.

The visit, framed as part of the annual Day of Polish-Hungarian Friendship celebrations, comes as Orbán faces upcoming parliamentary elections on April 12. According to a report by the Polish news portal VSquare, cited by Gazeta Prawna, Nawrocki will first meet with Hungarian President Tamás Sulyok in Przemyśl, Poland, before traveling to Budapest for talks with Orbán.

Tusk characterized the planned meeting as a “fatal mistake” and warned it signaled a dangerous strategy of weakening the European Union and bolstering Russian President Vladimir Putin. “Participation by the President in a meeting in Budapest with pro-Russian and Eurosceptic politicians is a fatal mistake and confirmation of a dangerous strategy of weakening the European Union and strengthening Putin,” Tusk stated on social media, as reported by Tok FM.

Foreign Minister Sikorski was similarly critical, noting that Orbán has repeatedly blocked new sanctions packages against Russia and has delayed the return of Polish military equipment sent to Ukraine. Sikorski also alleged that Orbán’s election campaign is utilizing disinformation about a potential Ukrainian invasion, supported by elements linked to Russian military intelligence (GRU), as reported by Gazeta.pl.

Marcin Przydacz, head of the Presidential Bureau of International Policy, defended the visit, stating that Nawrocki would not be attending any “such meeting,” and that the trip was solely focused on the Day of Polish-Hungarian Friendship celebrations. He dismissed Tusk’s claims as false and urged him to remove his social media post, according to reports. Presidential Spokesman Rafał Leśkiewicz echoed this sentiment, accusing Tusk of relying on “manipulative narratives.”

The timing of the visit is particularly sensitive, as Budapest is also scheduled to host a “Great Assembly” of far-right parties from the “Patriots for Europe” coalition on March 23, including figures like Matteo Salvini and Marine Le Pen, as noted by VSquare and reported in Gazeta Prawna.

Prior to the Budapest trip, President Nawrocki is scheduled to travel to the United States on Friday to attend the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC), where he is expected to meet with former President Donald Trump and members of the Polish diaspora, as well as visit a facility producing F-35 fighter jets, according to Onet News.