Posted on 02/06/2007 1:33:18 PM PST by lizol
Poland's twin leaders face accusations of filling ranks with loyalists lacking experience
WARSAW, Poland -- A day after they forced out Poland's respected minister of defense, the identical twins who run Poland face accusations they have packed the government with inexperienced loyalists -- and damaged the country's international standing.
Lech and Jaroslaw Kaczynski, president and prime minister respectively, are brothers who share conservative nationalist values and a passion for rooting out former communists from public life. Now, both face charges of cronyism after they replaced their defense chief with a presidential insider.
Radek Sikorski, an experienced defense minister with solid international credentials, resigned Monday amid reports the prime minister was planning to fire him.
Taking Sikorski's place will be Aleksander Szczyglo, a 43-year-old who has been a close associate of President Kaczynski for almost 20 years -- but whose defense experience is limited.
The Kaczynskis "have opted for a man who is closer to the political inner circle," said Eugeniusz Smolar, head of the Center for International Relations in Warsaw.
It remains an open question, some analysts say, whether Szczyglo can run the defense ministry, represent Poland within NATO and prepare to increase the number of Polish troops in Afghanistan from 100 to 1,000.
Szczyglo, critics say, is just the latest Kaczynski loyalist with questionable credentials appointed to a key government post.
The most contentious appointment came last month, when President Kaczynski named Slawomir Skrzypek -- a 43-year-old with no background in monetary policy -- to lead Poland's central bank. The appointment drew allegations of cronyism and raised fears that the bank's independence was at risk.
Piotr Kaczynski, a political analyst with the Institute of Public Affairs -- who is unrelated to the twins -- said such insider appointments are "marginalizing Poland."
Since the fall of communism in 1989, Poland has enjoyed a number of foreign policy successes that earned it plaudits abroad. In 2004, then-president Aleksander Kwasniewski intervened to defuse tensions between the Ukrainian government and opposition protestors after a dubious presidential election that the Ukrainian Supreme Court eventually ruled was fraudulent.
Today, such a prominent role for any Polish official would be "impossible," analyst Kaczynski argued.
Poland, some analysts say, has marginalized itself in Europe under the current government, elected in 2005. They say Poland has developed a reputation as a difficult partner more inclined to stew over historic wrongs inflicted by old foes Germany and Russia than to seek constructive solutions for the future.
Warsaw's effectiveness has also been weakened by the appointment of inexperienced government officials, said Sebastian Kurpas, a research fellow with the Center for European Policy Studies, a Brussels-based think tank.
"Before, there were people who were familiar with international negotiations and also with the EU system," Kurpas said. "And it seems that now there are people who have less experience in that field."
"So it seems Poland is always testing the ground, and there seems to be a constant nervousness of being sidelined, of being marginalized, which makes Poland appear like a very defensive player."
Sikorski's departure comes at a critical time -- just as Warsaw begins negotiations with the United States over a request to host a base for a missile defense system in Poland.
Some observers said the loss of Sikorski, known as a tough and effective negotiator, will weaken Poland's position in the talks.
Oxford-educated with strong ties in the United States, Sikorski has long been something as an outsider in the Kaczynski ranks, a fact that some observers say led the twins to distrust him -- and ultimately to show him the door.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.