German-Polish relations worsen as EP president joins in

One of the participants of the meeting was Hans-Gert Poettering, the president of the European Parliament, who said that he came as a German and as a European who speaks on behalf of 27 countries. The presence of Poetting at the meeting enraged League of Polish Families (LPR) politicians. The party issued a statement stating that Poettering has lost the moral right to perform his function as the president of the European Parliament and that his visit shows a lack of respect of the European Parliament representatives for Poland. Zbigniew Girzyński from the ruling Law and Justice (PiS) also criticized Poettering: "He either does not understand that his role is to represent the whole European parliament, or he abuses his position." (Rzeczpospolita, p. A1; Dziennik, p. 6; Gazeta Wyborcza, p. 11) E.B.