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Brussels begins review to possibly unfreeze €76 billion for Poland
The European Commission has formally begun a three-month process to review the €76.5 billion of cohesion funds that Poland has been unable to access due to concerns over judicial independence.
The cash has always been a matter of top priority for Warsaw, one of the largest recipients of cohesion funds, which pay for development projects meant to modernise infrastructure and bridge the gap with richer member states.
But the sweeping judicial reform introduced by the previous hard-right government of the Law and Justice (PiS) party, which empowered the disciplinary chamber of the Supreme Court to punish magistrates according to their rulings, led Brussels to freeze the multi-billion envelope, fearing democratic backsliding would have a detrimental impact on the spending and oversight of European taxpayers’ money.
The new liberal three-party coalition led by Prime Minister Donald Tusk has vowed to reverse course and undo the overhaul, deemed illegal by the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg, and the effects it had on the country’s courts and judges.
Tusk’s government, appointed barely a month ago, is now taking the initiative to prove its pro-EU credentials: last week, the executive informed the European Commission that the legislative changes introduced so far are enough to fulfil the “horizontal enabling condition” on judicial independence attached to the €76.5 billion.
This condition is “cross-cutting,” meaning it covers all the different tranches that make up the financial package. Without it being met, no money can be released.
“Poland has thereby officially informed the Commission that it considers having fulfilled this enabling condition in the area of judicial independence,” a spokesperson for the Commission said on Monday afternoon.
“In the Commission, we’re now analysing the letter submitted by the Polish authorities to assess whether the enabling condition in this area is fulfilled and we’re in regular contact with the Polish authorities at both technical and political levels.”
The review of the request can take up to three months, or even longer if the Commission asks Warsaw for clarifications.
On top of the condition related to the judiciary, Poland has at least two “thematic conditions” – transport and healthcare – attached to the respective chapters in the €76.5 billion. None of them have been met yet, the spokesperson added.
Separately, Warsaw is trying to secure unhindered access to its COVID-19 recovery plan, a mix of €34.5 billion in low-interest loans and €25.3 billion in grants. Brussels had approved the Polish plan on the condition of fulfilling three “super milestones,” two of which are linked to the controversial judicial reform.
So far, the Commission has released €5.1 billion in “pre-financing” from the recovery and resilience plan to provide immediate liquidity for projects that can strengthen energy independence and decrease imports of Russian fossil fuels.
Tuks is pushing for more payments to be unblocked in the coming months.
However, his ambitious timeline could be derailed by President Andrzej Duda, who is politically close to PiS and often espouses similar views. Duda has openly threatened to protect his presidential prerogative and veto the premier’s fast-tracked plan to undo the judicial overhaul, which Duda had supported in the past.
The worsening standoff between Tusk and Duda has attracted considerable media interest and raised concerns of a constitutional crisis. Last week, Vera Jourová, the European Commission’s vice-president in charge of values of transparency, told Euronews that Brussels was “very closely” following the events in Warsaw and would not hesitate to “act” if the political clash led to breaches of EU law.
new video loaded: W.H.O. Chief Visits Ebola-Struck Region: ‘It’s Time to Move Fast’
transcript
transcript
W.H.O. Chief Visits Ebola-Struck Region: ‘It’s Time to Move Fast’
Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the director general of the World Health Organization, told The New York Times on a flight to the Democratic Republic of Congo that swift international support was necessary to contain the Ebola virus, which is spreading rapidly there.
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“Of course there are different scenarios, but it’s in our hands. We move fast, we will catch up. If we don’t, it will be a very serious problem. So it’s time to really move fast.” A dire warning from the World Health Organization chief as we approach Ituri, the province at the center of Democratic Republic of Congo’s Ebola outbreak. More than 1,000 suspected Ebola cases and over 200 suspected deaths have been reported here. With no vaccines and no treatment for the virus species fueling the outbreak, containment is where immediate efforts should focus, health officials say. It’s not easy. Testing capacity is still very low. Protective supplies are short. Both the facilities for isolation and the region’s overall health care infrastructure are insufficient. “We cannot tell them what the problem is, Ebola is one but there are many problems and we have to listen to them.” It’s not the first Ebola outbreak for Congo, and as a glimmer of hope, officials say at least one health care worker was discharged earlier this week after recovering. But international commitments to fund their response aren’t enough. Only one-third of the needed funds have been delivered, the W.H.O. chief says. “Do you think the world is moving fast enough right now?” “It’s starting to understand now, but I still don’t think it’s enough.”
By Bethlehem Feleke, Michael Anthony Adams and Alisa Shodiyev Kaff
May 30, 2026
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Russia and the Taliban government in Afghanistan have signed a military cooperation pact, cementing an alliance that further solidifies Moscow’s influence in Central Asia, according to reports.
The deal, finalized Wednesday at an international security forum in Russia, followed a meeting between Russian Security Council Secretary Sergei Shoigu and Afghan Defense Minister Mohammad Yaqoob.
The Taliban Defense Ministry announced on X that Yaqoob had traveled to Russia to attend the conference.
Yaqoob is the Taliban’s former military chief and the son of Taliban founder Mullah Mohammad Omar.
AL QAEDA REMAINS MOST DANGEROUS TERRORIST GROUP 24 YEARS AFTER 9/11, EXPERT WARNS
Russia and the Taliban government in Afghanistan have signed a new military-technical cooperation pact, cementing an alliance that solidifies Moscow’s influence in Central Asia. (Photo by Elke Scholiers / Getty Images)
Omar had formed a close alliance with Osama bin Laden and provided a safe haven from which al Qaeda planned the 9/11 terrorist attacks.
As of Thursday, neither Russia nor the Afghan side had shared the further details of the new military agreement.
“Afghanistan and Russia have long and historical relations. In this direction, we want to move further. We have expanded bilateral relations,” Yaqoob said at the meeting.
The pact follows statements from a senior Russian security official who noted that Moscow has established a “full-fledged partnership” with Afghanistan’s ruling Taliban and is encouraging other countries in the region to expand cooperation with Kabul, Reuters reported.
The Taliban had regained power in August 2021, after overthrowing the U.S.-backed Afghan government run by President Ashraf Ghani.
In 2021, Russian President Vladimir Putin acknowledged the possibility of dropping Russia’s classification of the Taliban as a terrorist organization.
FORMER AFGHAN TRANSLATOR WARNS OF STARVATION, HUMANITARIAN CRISIS: ‘BACK TO WHERE WE STARTED IN 2001’
In 2021, Russian President Vladimir Putin acknowledged the possibility of dropping Russia’s classification of the Taliban as a terrorist organization. (Alexander Kazakov/Sputnik/Kremlin Pool Photo/AP, File)
In 2024, he called the Taliban “allies in the fight against terrorism” and Russia became the first country to formally recognize the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan.
“After several years of vacillation, Russia has become the first country in the world to officially recognize the Taliban government in Afghanistan,” Nikita Smagin, an expert on Iranian foreign and domestic policies, Islamism and Russia’s policy in the Middle East, said in a report from the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.
“It’s more of a symbolic gesture than something driven by trade or economic considerations,” Smagin added, describing how when Taliban militants entered the Afghan capital in August 2021, “Russia was already deemed eligible for special treatment.”
“Its diplomatic mission was immediately provided with security, and Russian Ambassador Dmitry Zhirnov became the first foreign diplomat to meet with the new rulers of Afghanistan,” he explained.
On Wednesday, Shoigu also called for Western countries to unfreeze sanctioned Afghan assets.
AFGHANISTAN’S ONLY WOMEN-LED RADIO STATION TO RESUME OPERATIONS AFTER TALIBAN LIFTS SUSPENSION
Russia has become the first country in the world to officially recognize the Taliban government in Afghanistan. (Photo by Elke Scholiers / Getty Images)
“We are convinced that Western countries should unfreeze blocked Afghan assets, fully recognize their responsibility for their 20-year presence in Afghanistan, and bear the burden of the country’s post-conflict reconstruction,” Shoigu said, according to reports.
“Moscow needs to take steps that will restore its image as an influential power that holds the initiative, and recognition of the Taliban regime serves precisely that purpose,” Smagin added.
“The status of the first country to establish official diplomatic relations with the Taliban government should ensure Russia has a leading role in discussions of regional security issues.”
The recognition of the Taliban, he said, was an attempt by Russia to “prove itself as a leading global force that is not afraid to break established norms and set precedents for other countries.”
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Moscow continues to emphasize the need to work directly with Kabul as it faces severe, ongoing security threats from various rival Islamist militant groups operating throughout Central Asia and the Middle East, Reuters said.
Shoigu also said Moscow was building a “pragmatic dialogue” with the Taliban that included security, trade, culture and humanitarian support, the outlet reported May 14.
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