“I have decided that I will not sign a law that allows Poland to take out SAFE loans,” the president said. “I will never sign a law that harms our sovereignty, independence, economic security and military security.”
The vetoed legislation would have created a security financing mechanism managed by state-run Bank Gospodarstwa Krajowego, through which the Polish government could draw on SAFE funds to invest in defence.
Government officials said the presidential veto would not prevent Poland from accessing the EU programme, though it could complicate financing for some security services such as the border guard and police.
Poland was expected to be the largest beneficiary of SAFE, potentially receiving about EUR 43.7 billion in loans for defence investment projects.
The government has said that about 89 percent of the funds would go to Polish defence companies.
In his address, Nawrocki said that the EU defence loan scheme would have long-term implications.
“The question of entering the European SAFE loan programme is not a matter for one party or one government. It concerns the future of the Polish state,” he said.
The president said the programme had "raised questions from the outset" and criticised the government for rejecting "most of the amendments" he had proposed to the legislation.
Nawrocki also compared SAFE loans to foreign-currency mortgages widely known in Poland as Swiss-franc loans, which left many borrowers facing sharply rising repayments.
“Everything was supposed to be safe, but later installments rose so much that they led to major financial crises,” he said, warning that loans could burden younger generations for decades.
He said defence investment was necessary but should be carried out “wisely and responsibly” without limiting the country’s sovereignty
Nawrocki pointed to his alternative “Polish SAFE 0%” proposal calling for the establishment of a national defence investment fund.
The president also said that Poland’s central bank had generated more than PLN 185 billion (EUR 43.3 billion) for the country in recent years, partly through increased gold reserves and investment decisions, and argued such resources could be used to strengthen national security instead of taking foreign loans.
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Source: IAR, PAP