Poland's constitutional crisis deepens as Prime Minister Tusk faces accusations of power grab
Poland's constitutional crisis escalated after Prime Minister Donald Tusk's government suspended the head of the Constitutional Tribunal, prompting President Karol Nawrocki to cut short a foreign trip and triggering diplomatic fallout with three ambassadors resigning.
The dispute erupted after the tribunal announced the suspension of its president, Bogdan Święczkowski, a move that supporters of Tusk's government described as necessary to restore judicial independence, while critics denounced it as an unconstitutional power grab.
The confrontation drew riot police and protesters outside the tribunal building, prompting Nawrocki to turn his plane around and return to Warsaw from a trip to Senegal. Police detained three people after some demonstrators clashed with officers.
Diplomatic Fallout
The crisis is triggering diplomatic consequences, with at least three Polish ambassadors resigning in protest. Marcin Przydacz confirmed that Poland's permanent representative to the U.N., Krzysztof Szczerski, resigned Monday, following the weekend resignations of ambassadors to China and Romania.
Even lawyers who are close to the Tusk government say that there's absolutely no legal basis for such behavior.
Deepening Crisis
Simone Rodan-Benzaquen, senior envoy to Europe at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, emphasized that Poland's constitutional issues predate Tusk's government. "Poland has been living with a deeply compromised Constitutional Tribunal for more than a decade," she said.
The conflict centers on parliament's constitutional authority to appoint judges, with several appointments blocked during a years-long standoff between the government, presidency and tribunal. Judge Anna Korwin-Piotrowska, elected by parliament in March 2026, issued the suspension order.
International Reactions
European Commissioner Michael McGrath backed Poland's parliament authority to appoint judges, while French opposition leader Marine Le Pen accused Brussels of applying double standards. U.S. Ambassador to Poland Tom Rose posted that "America is on Poland's side," urging restraint.
Critics like Nile Gardner from the Heritage Foundation called the events "an attempted coup" and "straight out of the Putin playbook," while others like Boštjan Udovič defended Tusk's efforts to restore constitutional arrangements.
Related
