Wolfgang Schaeuble: Poland should find itself in the leadership of the EU. “As soon as possible”

“Poland must finally be admitted to the leadership of European integration as an equal and equally important member state as the French and Germany. Poland should be treated as soon as possible, it always deserved it properly. We cannot miss this opportunity” – said Schaeuble in an interview for Sunday editions “” – “Welt am Sonntag”.

The CDU politician expressed regret that French President Emmanuel Macron and Chancellor Olaf Scholz did not invite Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki to leave for Kiev in mid-June. “A completely different signal would go out into the world if Poland, Germany and France were to come together in Kiev,” he stressed.

Defense policy is a common task for Poland, France and Germany

According to Schaeuble, Poland plays a leading role in European defense policy, which became clear to everyone after Russia’s attack on Ukraine. “Together with Warsaw and Paris, Berlin could work to ensure that the European defense system is not an alternative to NATO, but a complement to it,” he explained. In his opinion, Europe needs its own nuclear deterrence potential. In return for France to make this potential available, Germany should increase its financial contribution to deterrence.

Schaeuble also drew attention to the importance of the issue of assistance to refugees. “We cannot wait for everyone to accept the refugee distribution (between EU countries),” he stressed. “Who does not want to cooperate, must think about a different way of joining” – he added. In this context, the CDU politician referred to Poland again. “I must also praise the Poles here. Their readiness to help Ukrainian refugees is great” – assessed the Christian Democrats.

Will Poland accept the partnership with Russia?

Schaeuble recalled that he has long been a supporter of introducing the principle of majority voting in the EU. He admitted that the current policy of Germany towards Russia “is not a reason to be proud”. At the same time, he said that he believed in partner relations with Russia if it respected the principles of partnership cooperation.

“Poland will also certainly agree that the partnership with Russia, which recognizes the renunciation of power, the inviolability of borders and the basic principles of international law, is right from a political point of view,” he said.

After the CDU joined the opposition after the lost parliamentary elections in September 2021, Schaeuble does not hold any state functions. The 79-year-old CDU MP is the most experienced German politician. He has been a deputy since 1972. In the past, he headed the ministries of internal affairs and finance. Until last year, he was the chairman of the Bundestag.