08/10/2009

Poland's Kaczynski To Approve Lisbon

Poland's Eurosceptic President Lech Kaczynski is to sign the Lisbon Treaty into law on Sunday.

It has emerged today that President Kaczynski said he would wait until Ireland had passed the referendum before signing the Polish people up to the controversial treaty.

The Polish parliament had already approved the treaty earlier last year.

Only two out of the 27 EU member states are yet to fully sign up to Lisbon, with both Poland and the Czech Republic waiting for their president to sign to finally ratify the document.

However, last night, Aleksander Szczyglow, a presidential aide, told a Polish Television station: "The president keeps his word. He said he will sign the treaty with no delays if the Irish say 'yes'. On Sunday he will sign the treaty."

Irish voters backed the treaty, designed to streamline EU decision-making, in a referendum last Friday by an unexpected landslide majority.

Mr Kaczynski's move will leave only Czech President Vaclav Klaus still to approve the document, which requires unanimous backing by all 27 EU member states to come into force.

Meanwhile, a Czech Constitutional Court is studying a complaint against the treaty and the equally Eurosceptic Czech President, Vaclav Klaus, has not yet signed it.

The Czech Leader, Jan Fischer, told EU leaders he fully expects his country to ratify the EU's Lisbon Treaty by the end of this year.

(DW/BMcC)

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