During his one-day visit to Stockholm, the Speaker of the Sejm met with King Carl XVI Gustav of Sweden, Riksdag Speaker Urban Ahlin, First Deputy Speaker of the Rikstag Ewa Thalen Finne, Foreign Minister Margot Wallstroem and Defense Minister Peter Hultqvist.
Marek Kuchciński recalled the solidarity shown by Sweden during the martial law in Poland and emphasized the long-standing good relations between our countries. According to the Marshal, this is a good foundation for joint initiatives.
The main topics of discussion were, among others, the issue of energy security - in the context of the construction of Nord Stream 2 - and in the context of defense against Russian aggression, i.e. cooperation between the Baltic countries and NATO, as well as strengthening of the Eastern Partnership.
The cooperation at the level of parliaments has a chance to develop thanks to the series of friendship group meetings proposed by the Marshal, during which the issues such as cohesion policy, regional development, competitiveness, innovativeness, new technologies and cooperation between Polish and Swedish entrepreneurs would be discussed.
The talks also concerned the reception of refugees. The Speaker pointed out that given the great differences in civilization, religion, and approach to family, assistance should be directed first and foremost to the place where the problem is, and the reception of refugees should be an internal decision of EU member states.
In the conversation with Ahlin, the Speaker touched upon the future of the EU, the necessity to repair it and the EU budget in the context of Brexit and the rule of law. Marek Kuchciński emphasized that he is one of those who want Poland to be present in the EU, however the EU needs to be strengthened. One of the warning signs, which could indicate the imminent disintegration of the Community, is the low turnout in the elections to the European Parliament.
The Speaker of the Sejm paid a visit at the invitation of the Riksdag Chairman. Ahlin paid a visit to Poland during the Polish-Swedish Forum in Warsaw, November 2016.
Photo: Pawel Kula
