On May 17-18, Warsaw will host the Summit of Speakers of the Central and Eastern European Parliaments. The main topics of the meeting will be: security of the region, cooperation in infrastructure, and building the role of national parliaments. The initiative is the idea of the Polish Speakers of the Sejm and Senate.

- We took the decision on such an initiative in consultation with many experts from our home country and after a number of different meetings held over the years, among others among the politicians of the Visegrad Group, the Weimar Triangle, the Baltic States and the Eastern Partnership,' said the Speaker of the Sejm about the upcoming summit. - Firstly, after the death of President Lech Kaczyński, we received information from various quarters that a certain void was developing in our region and we had to react to that. Secondly, last year we tried to invite several countries in Europe, but outside the European Union, to reflect together on how they see cooperation between themselves and other countries of Central or Western Europe. We were surprised by their very positive reaction - hence the planned summit - he justified.

TWO-SPEED EUROPE

Marek Kuchciński said that "there are several reasons for this meeting and the danger of maintaining European integration through a 'two-speed Europe' is one of them". - It is the role of the representatives of our country to look for a solution to this very serious problem - he said.

The Speaker of the Sejm noted that "beyond our eastern or north-eastern borders there are a number of countries that either aspire to become a European Union state or have a similar point of view to Poland, that is, they see Europe as a community of sovereign and cooperating states. - We believe that parliamentary diplomacy should have a great deal to say here. These types of initiatives are important and are not directed against the EU, but are a certain form of encouragement to think about the renewal of the Union, by strengthening the significance of national parliaments, and not only the organs of the European Union. It is also about rebuilding national consciousness and national sovereignty and statehood itself. These values are very important for the countries with which we are going to meet," he added.

KAZAKHSTAN TURKEY IS AN AUTHORITARIAN GOVERNMENT

The presidents and vice-presidents of the parliaments have declared their arrival in Warsaw: Azerbaijan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Montenegro, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Lithuania, Latvia, Moldova, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Turkey, Ukraine and Hungary.

Speaker Kuchciński pointed out that "the governments in the countries that will come to the May meeting are very diverse. - This is all the more a challenge and a desire to find a recipe and an agreement or dialogue. Otherwise, we will continue to accept the building of walls, which we had to deal with in postwar Poland," he pointed out. - Kazakhstan and Turkey are countries located in geographical Europe and, taking into account the possibilities of infrastructure development, contacts with these countries are necessary and indispensable. In the coming years, cooperation between China and European countries will develop extremely rapidly, so it is necessary to derive a common goal and strive for it, he added.

A FORM OF FAMILIARIZATION WITH DEMOCRATIC PARLIAMENTARY POWER

- We are guided by the principle of "equal among equals, free among freedmen", that is the old principle of the Republic of Poland on which the first European Union was based - a Union of two, three, or even many nations," he said.

The Speaker noted that "interest in the meeting is accented differently. - But we simply want to derive a dialogue with those countries that wish to visit us. The fact that the meeting is organized in Warsaw does not in any way indicate us as a potential leader. Such leaders in their dimensions may be Ukraine, Turkey or Hungary," he indicated.

Marshal Kuchciński emphasized that "cooperation of several countries gives our part of Europe a chance for better perception and faster development". - I do not hide the fact that also Germany needs an equal partner in terms of potential in this part of Europe - he pointed out.

SUMMIT TAKEN (UN)SERIOUSLY

Marek Kuchciński also said that "we are not at the stage of evaluation from the 'old Europe' countries. - There is great interest in the summit organized by Poland. Both German and Swedish representatives asked about it. It is a form of visitation, which has not been organized before. But the point is to draw Germany's attention to problems which are close to the countries of Eastern Europe or the European Union. The war in Ukraine is not only a problem of our eastern neighbors, but also of Poland. What is the consequence of this? Consequently, it is also a problem of the entire European Union, including Western countries," said Marek Kuchciński.

According to the Chancellery of the Sejm, the planned topics of the summit will include: security of the region in the face of current threats, cooperation in the field of infrastructure on the North-South axis, and building the role of national parliaments in international politics.