Nawrocki said in a televised address last Thursday that he would not sign the government’s bill implementing the European Union’s Security Action for Europe (SAFE) mechanism, which offers loans for defense spending.
He argued that the issue went beyond money and raised questions about sovereignty, saying Poland’s security should not depend on outside decisions.
Nawrocki said the constitution allows some powers to be transferred to international organizations, but only within limits.
He argued that one of the core elements of state sovereignty is control over the armed forces and questioned whether a solution that could restrict that control is compatible with Poland’s constitution.
He also warned the government against trying to obtain SAFE funds without the vetoed law in place and said any attempt to take on foreign debt through what he called an unlawful "back-door" route could eventually bring both political and legal consequences.
The government moved ahead on Friday, adopting a resolution at an extraordinary meeting to launch a defense program called Polska Zbrojna (Arming Poland).
Prime Minister Donald Tusk said the presidential veto would make things "more difficult" but would not stop the government from moving forward.
Ryszard Piotrowski, a constitutional law scholar, said there may be reasons to question this form of borrowing but added that it was too early to judge whether any constitutional accusations would hold up.
He said the president would first need to spell out his claims in precise terms.
Jerzy Stępień, a former head of Poland’s Constitutional Tribunal, took a different view. He said there were no grounds for accusing the prime minister or the government of violating the constitution.
Stępień pointed to Article 93 of the constitution, which says government resolutions are acts of internal law and bind only the organizational units subordinate to the government.
He argued that if the resolution and the agreement based on it are to be carried out by bodies under government authority, such as the defense ministry and military agencies, then the Cabinet has the right to adopt it.
He added that a law would be needed only if the agreement imposed obligations on all citizens, rather than on institutions subordinate to the government.
The government says that after the presidential veto, the SAFE mechanism will be handled through the Armed Forces Support Fund, which operates within Bank Gospodarstwa Krajowego, the state development bank.
The fund was established under the Homeland Defense Act, passed in March 2022 when the right-wing Law and Justice (PiS) party was in power.
Under that law, BGK can take out loans and issue bonds for the fund’s needs, officials say.
The political argument has also focused on whether SAFE carries a "conditionality" mechanism that could allow Brussels to suspend funding.
Critics in the opposition and the president’s circle say that could expose Poland to pressure, drawing comparisons to the dispute over National Recovery Plan funds, which were delayed amid the PiS government’s rule-of-law conflict with the European Commission.
Government officials reject that comparison. They say the conditions attached to SAFE are similar to those used in most EU funding programs and are limited to ensuring the money is spent for its declared purpose and in line with anti-corruption rules.
European Commission spokesman Thomas Regnier said on Friday that Brussels was finalizing the loan agreement so it could be signed with the Polish authorities and allow an advance payment next month.
He said time was critical and the plan had to be implemented without delay.
Nawrocki and central bank chief Adam Glapiński have promoted an alternative plan called "Polish SAFE 0%." It would create a Polish Defense Investment Fund financed mainly from National Bank of Poland (NBP) profits.
Supporters say that would protect national decision-making and reduce exposure to outside pressure.
Tusk dismissed the proposal as unreliable and politically motivated.
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Source: IAR, PAP
Click on the audio player above for a report by Michał Owczarek.