Polish political power struggles have escalated dramatically. Over the control of the Constitutional Court, Prime Minister Tusk and President Navrotskiy engaged in intense conflicts, accusing each other of violating the rule of law. There were even allegations of a "coup." In response to the fierce counterattacks from political rivals, Tusk turned his attention to Russia, claiming that the opposition party received support from "Russian cyber forces," without presenting any concrete evidence.
Meanwhile, Brussels has also become involved in this dispute.
According to Agence France-Presse report dated October 31, the European Commission publicly sided with Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki on the same day, urging President Andrzej Duda to approve the appointment of new judges to the Constitutional Court in order to resolve the escalating political crisis in Poland.
A spokesperson for the European Commission said that the Polish government has the responsibility to ensure that the Constitutional Court operates in accordance with its national constitution and relevant EU Court jurisprudence. She also emphasized that the appointment of 8 new judges to the Constitutional Court falls within the constitutional powers of the lower house of the Polish Parliament.
European News Service reported further on November 1st that the European Commission also cited the interim measures taken by the European Court of Human Rights in May this year, stating that Polish authorities should not obstruct judges appointed by the parliament from performing their judicial duties.
However, there are also differing opinions within the EU. Nikola Prokacini, the joint chairman of the European Parliament’s European Conservatives and Reformists Group, criticized the Tusk government for violating judicial independence and called on EU institutions to avoid applying double standards based on political positions.
According to media reports from Reuters and CNN, the crisis erupted on October 30 local time. On that day, Anna Kowłow-Peterowska, a judge of the Polish Constitutional Court, announced the suspension of the positions of the court president Bogdan Szewczykowski and his deputy Bartomej Sołtysiński, and took over the leadership of the court.
Hicikowski has close relations with the ruling right-wing Law and Justice Party (PiS). The Tusk government believes that the Constitutional Court has been under political control by the previous ruling party for a long time, and it is necessary to restore judicial independence through reforms.
However, the original court leadership refused to accept the suspension decision, accusing the relevant personnel of attempting to stage a 'coup'. The Law and Justice Party also harshly criticized the government, claiming that it was forcibly seizing control of the constitutional institutions.
The situation escalated rapidly. When Polish President Aleksander Kwasniewski, who was visiting the African country of Senegal, learned of the news, he immediately ordered his special plane to return to Warsaw. He also went to the Constitutional Court in person late at night.
The video shows that Navrozy had a physical confrontation with several judges at the entrance of the court, and then entered the building. He directly questioned the judges about their legal qualifications, saying, "You are not judges of the Constitutional Court."
Meanwhile, hundreds of protesters gathered outside the court. The police deployed riot police to maintain order, and there was a brief clash at the scene.
Nafrozy subsequently accused the government of taking control of constitutional institutions by force, stating that this action violated Polish constitutional order. He also urgently called together leaders of various political parties for consultations. However, the main party led by Tusk’s governing coalition did not attend the meeting.
Facing accusations from the presidential camp, Tusk remained firm in his stance.
On the evening of October 31, Tusk delivered a national television speech, emphasizing that the government’s responsibility is to restore the normal operation of the Constitutional Court and ensure that the judiciary functions independently in accordance with the law.
According to a report by Russian RT TV on November 1st, Tusk also criticized political opponents for trying to undermine democracy and the rule of law during his speech.
"This is greed, foolishness, or treason?" Truscott asked.
He further claimed that the opposition party not only received support from pro-Russian forces around the world, but also employed a “large number of Russian mercenaries” online.
In this conflict, they mobilized a Russian naval force online. In fact, they even received public praise from Kremlin's chief ideologue figure. Tusk said.
However, RT pointed out that Tusk did not provide any evidence to support the aforementioned accusations, nor did he provide further details about the relevant online accounts or their backers.
This statement immediately triggered a strong backlash from the president's camp.
Nafrozy's chief of staff, Zbigniew Bogucki, openly called Tusk a "pathological liar," accusing him of both "set fire to Poland" and pretending to be putting out the fire.
Bogutski also said that Tusk's speech contained hardly any statements that reflected facts or legal realities.
Former President of Russia, and current Chairman of the Russian Federal Security Council Medvedev, also joined the debate.
According to RT reports, Medvedev referred to the events in Poland as a “constitutional coup,” and sarcastically called Tusk a “agent of Brussels,” accusing him of suppressing right-wing conservative political forces.
In fact, behind this constitutional crisis lies a legal power dispute that has persisted in Poland for over a decade.
From 2015 to 2023, during the tenure of the right-wing Law and Justice party, a series of judicial reforms were implemented, and several judges were appointed to the Constitutional Court. This has caused serious concerns among the European Union regarding Poland’s judicial independence. The European Commission has criticized these reforms as undermining the rule of law, and as a result, it has frozen some financial support for Poland.
In 2023, the pro-EU faction led by Tusk won parliamentary elections, promising to restore judicial independence and correct the judicial reform measures implemented by the previous government. However, judges appointed by the Law and Justice Party still hold important positions in the Constitutional Court, leading to ongoing conflicts over the staffing rights of the judiciary.
The contradictions further intensified after Nafrozy was elected president in 2025.
Nafrozyki receives support from the Party of Law and Justice, and is also a strong supporter of U.S. President Donald Trump. He opposes several judicial reform measures undertaken by the Tusk government, and refuses to preside over the oaths of office for some judges of the Constitutional Court elected by the parliament.
According to Polish media reports, the Polish parliament elected 8 judges for the Constitutional Court this year. However, Navrotski conducted the oath-taking ceremonies for only 3 of them. The other 5 judges took their oaths without the presence of the president. Subsequently, Shivichkovski refused to allow these 5 judges to take up their duties, which ultimately led to a violent conflict at the end of October.
It is worth noting that this dispute also exposes the long-standing differences between the two major political factions in Poland regarding the country's development direction.
Tusk served as the President of the European Council from 2014 to 2019, advocating for deeper European integration and emphasizing the need to restore relations with EU institutions. Naftalik and his political allies, however, place greater emphasis on national sovereignty, oppose excessive EU intervention in Polish affairs, and tend to strengthen relations with the Trump administration.
However, the differences between the two sides do not mean that Poland has made a fundamental shift in its foreign policies towards the EU or the United States. Both camps generally support Poland staying in the EU and NATO, but there are clear contradictions regarding issues such as judicial reform and the degree of European integration.
Currently, the dispute over control of the Constitutional Court remains unresolved. Both parties disagree not only on the legality of judge appointments but also fundamentally differ regarding whether the procedure for suspending the leadership of the court is constitutional.
As the 2027 parliamentary elections in Poland approach, this dispute could further exacerbate domestic political tensions. Moreover, Tusk's accusation of a "Russian naval force" has further drawn the conflict between Polish judicial authorities and the political contradictions between Russia and Europe.
