A tough sell

Among the representatives of the 27 EU member states who gathered in Brussels for the bloc's June summit, Poland's delegation was definitely in the spotlight. In fact, the country's steadfast objection to the proposed EU voting system - scheduled to be implemented in 2009 - has heated the climate of public debate to a boiling point throughout the EU.

Polish officials put forward a square-root system which they said offered "more balance" in voting power among EU members. "Poland is not accustomed to giving up when it is right" declared the Polish President, Lech Kaczyński, before the summit.

Poland's intractable stand drew voices of criticism and approval alike. Der Spiegel weekly, for example, referred to Poland as "unloved neighbors," while José Manuel Barroso, President of the European Commission, warned that it could have problems obtaining EU funds in the future. On the other hand, Die Welt daily claimed that Poland "was right and had the quiet support of many countries," while the Financial Times daily said that "mathematics is on the side of Poland."

Adding even more fuel to the fire, Prime Minister Jarosław Kaczyński remarked that had it not been for Germany and WWII, Poland would have 66 million inhabitants and much greater voting power.

Thursday and Friday of the summit saw a series of fierce negotiations in Brussels, including several bilateral talks between Angela Merkel and Lech Kaczyński. Several compromise proposals appeared as well, but as WBJ went to press, no final resolution to the issue had been reached.