“Germany has turned the EU into the Fourth Reich”: Polish Deputy Prime Minister in a controversial statement
In an interview with a local newspaper in Poland, Deputy Prime Minister of Poland Jaroslav Kaczynski made an unusual statement, explaining:
Speaking about Poland’s current confrontation with the EU, Deputy Prime Minister Jaroslav Kaczynski told a local newspaper that some countries were “not enthusiastic about the prospect of a German Reich IV being built on the basis of the EU”, claiming that Berlin had abused the bloc’s legal mechanisms to To deprive his country of its “right to self-determination.”
“If we, as Poles, agree to such a permanent permanence, we will be humiliated in different ways,” he said, adding that if Poland acted on the EU’s approach to economic and energy policy, it “would mean our citizens would be poorer a few years ahead than they are now.”
Kaczynski’s remarks came shortly after the EU initiated legal action against the Polish government, accusing it of circumventing European laws and regulations. Two previous decisions in Polish courts have ruled that the laws of the country themselves take precedence over the laws of the European Union, a position rejected by the bloc, which insists that member states are obliged to abide by its rules.
However, the deputy prime minister also arranged his “Fourth Reich” remark, stating that he did not intend to compare Berlin to the Nazi genocide regime headed by Adolf Hitler.
“This term – the Fourth German Reich – is not something to be condemned,” he said. “It’s not about the Third Reich, but a reference to the First as well.”
Although he did not elaborate further, it is possible that the minister was referring to attempts at political consolidation that took place under the Holy Roman Empire – which, despite its name, was composed mostly of German states – or what is unofficially known as the “First Reich”. However, Kaczynski claimed that Berlin was now trying to control the bloc’s justice court in order to subject other member states to its will.
“The court is the basic tool used in this action,” he said, adding that the body is “limited by nothing” and can therefore “freely interpret European law and draw conclusions from it that allow theft. And so it happens.”
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