As everyone knows, the xenophobic website of the Dutch Party for Freedom has been widely condemned. Many countries did it through their ambassadors, so did the European parliament and the UE Commissioner on justice Viviane Reding. A minority of the protesters, myself included, decided to conquer evil with good. Rather then resent Geert Wilders’ rudeness, I praise the Dutch as a wise nation.

Within the full landscape of protest there is also an original initiative of two members of the European Parliament from the European People’s Party – Jacek Saryusz-Wolski (Poland) and Sebastian Bodu (Romania). This rather original coalition called for a boycott of good from the Netherlands. Hooray! The idea is first-rate but the action “Boycott the Dutch” may end with a dud.

I mean this: instead of Shell we can refuel at BP, instead of Lipton we can drink another tea, but what to do with a cold pint of Zywiec, which belongs to Heneken? And the problem does not end here. As you know, more than a half of world export of flowers, including carnations, come from the Netherlands. Well, how will the brave MEPs tell the wrong flowers from the right ones on March 8? And what if traditional tights enclosed to the flower on that day will be brought by Dutch trucks that circulate in Europe en masse.

The boycott could also badly affect the diet of MEPs. After all, they work in Brussels and most of fish and seafood arrives here from the neighbouring Netherlands. So it appears that the first victims of the boycott will be… the authors of the idea!

But seriously speaking – Wilders himself is not bothered with the protests at all. Each day he receives on his website 10 000 entries and turns up the tension. It is noteworthy that in the neighbouring Belgium work around the same number of Poles as in the Netherlands. In identical social conditions the presence of Polish people does not cause any problems. But it is like that when you release a genie from the bottle…

The European diplomacy, created with difficulties, finally goes into its own headquarters. It occupies a seven-floor modern building near the Schuman roundabout. 1,300 employees, led by Lady Ashton, are moving to a 50 000 m2 place rented from a company AXA for “only” 12 million euro per year. The building will integrate the service, although several hundred persons responsible for military planning, intelligence and working in a crisis center, will stay in a specially protected building near the royal military school.

From now on, one will know exactly where to address complaints about the quality of the service’s actions. For those interested, here is the address: Avenue de Cortenbergh 1, 1000 Brussels.

PS: It is good that the Prime Minister has withdrawn from ACTA. But when I think about the fact that for 5 years, at all stages of the negotiations, until the end – the signature, there was no single official who warned the Prime Minister of the embarrassment, I get really annoyed. He gave the alibi to his people because he stuck to this absurd stubbornness. Today for a public scandal he cannot fire even one official.

Today Ukraine is not the favorite subject of interest for the EU. After having freezed the association agreement both parties remain discreetly silent, which does not mean, however, that nothing is happening.

President Yanukovych understood this annoying fact that half a year before the parliamentary elections he had scored three defeats. There is no new price for gas from Russia, there is no association and free trade agreement with the European Union, there is no agreement with the International Monetary Fund.

Ukraine is about to buy in spring its own bonds worth 13.5 billion dollars, and without external assistance it wouldn’t work. Someone has to answer to this situation. According to the rules of politics it will be the Prime Minister. We will probably see the change of government this spring.

Among the candidates for Azarov’s succession we have Sergei Tihipko. But he will not accept to be a puppet, because his political ambitions go much further than just the elections. As for now, the Minister of Finance has changed. “Young, gifted” Choroszkowski is about to show the world that the situation is under control and it is worth investing in a country on the Dnieper.

What can effectively and genuinely improve the situation is the creation of a gas consortium with Russia and the EU. The gas will be cheaper perhaps, but the structural price of this situation will be very high.

Germany is recently popular in Poland. As a leader or a hegemon (delete as appropriate). The differences between these two countries are best visible on the example of ACTA.

The German government has not signed the agreement, respecting the objections of the Minister of Justice, although people did not protest in the streets. The Polish Prime Minister, despite protests – those in the streets and from his minister – ordered to sign the agreement.

One question remains: in what cases will the Poles imitate the Germans and how much will such an imitation cost?

The nationalist Dutch Freedom Party (PVV) launched a website on which they collect complaints about the bad Poles disturbing the peace and prosperity of the Dutch. The idea is stupid because on the Internet you can anonymously enter any nonsense and the legal party’s seal will accredit it. I do not think the idea is worthy of the highest Polish authorities’ fury because its risk is small. The Dutch are a very peaceful nation and deserve a different reaction.

Here is my suggestion – “Good Dutchman”. I encourage the Poles, Bulgarians, Romanians and others who have visited this country and know its people, to write in comments under this entry 2-3 sentences about their experiences. I believe that the vast majority of them is positive. Let’s put together those who think positively about each other against those who want to glorify the stench.
Here is my first comment:

I came to the Netherlands in 1975. I was hitchhiking, and in places where I couldn’t do it – I was cycling. At the entrance to highway cars were not allowed to stop. So I got caught by the police, fined (5 guilders) and taken together with the bike in a place where it was possible to thumb a ride.

Black clouds are gathering over Ms Ashton. I have written many times about the feeling of insufficiency caused by her service and herself. This tendency is growing. There are the more and more influential commentators and think-thanks in Brussels who say loudly about it.  Recently The Economist has joined this circle. They propose nothing less or more than a “Berlusconi option” for Lady Ashton. This is like forcing an incumbent politician to resign during his/her term of office.

You could create a long list of reproaches, but something’s up. Not only in the media.

The heads of major countries, confronted with the EU’s impotence in economic affairs, would be willing to throw someone to the lions (public opinion). Lady Ashton perfectly suits for this role because the government that supported her candidacy does not exist anymore and she has not built any political background for herself. She obtained the post as a European Socialist and there is currently no strong candidate from the same option. But… the Socialists have recently occupied the position of the President of the European Parliament.

In this context, there are two names that are being mentioned: Carl Bildt, Swedish Minister of Foreign Affairs, and Radek Sikorski (Polish MFA). The latter, in fact, has a problem defining his approach toward Germany (leadership or hegemony) but he is one of the longest-serving incumbent Foreign Ministers. It is also obvious that in Poland he does not have any interesting self-development opportunities.

The internet users from Poland did not agree to participate in the Prime Minister’s “show-off”. They demand that the Civic Platform take a political stance, which means that they want Poland to have a possibility to withdraw from the ACTA agreement. They do not want to be a “fig leaf” to decisions taken previously. Since they are well educated people, they do not demand, however, what seems to be an obvious matter.

Since the beginning of this crisis, ministers have expressed contradictory views, sometimes saying complete nonsense. So has Prime Minister himself. Someone should take responsibility for this mess, someone should apologise and this is a necessary condition, though not sufficient to sit down together at the table.

Meanwhile, Donald Tusk does not see such a need. He has simply changed his mind and he wants to talk. The debate proposed by the government is like if one gave aspirin to a patient sick with pneumonia. While what he rally needs is a hospital and an antibiotic.

In France we can observe a political campaign, in which strange things happen. Nicolas Sarkozy has two major rivals. These are François Hollande and Marine Le Pen. Studies show that the representative of the Socialists is slightly winning (over 20%), Sarkozy is just behind him, and a little further – Le Pen from the far-right National Front.

The current President more or less from the beginning has started running a reasonable campaign, which means that he broke with theatrical gestures and began to talk about the real problems of the French. Too late though, according to specialists.

Everything indicates that the first round of the elections will not be decisive. So what can happen in the second one? If there are Hollande and Sarkozy, then the Socialist can be sure that none of the representatives of the extreme left will not give their vote to the current President. Sarkozy, in turn, will certainly not get votes from Marine Le Pen. Holland would therefore have a serious chance to win.

Hollande will be soon hosted in Poland at a debate organized by Gazeta Wyborcza. There will be therefore an opportunity to hear about his vision of Europe, and we know already that we do not like Sarkozy’s vision at all. But Donald Tusk will have a problem since the loyalty within the EPP will oblige him to support Sarkozy while Hollande would be probably a better partners for making deals. 

Well, it worked. It went just as I predicted yesterday. We have obtained more than what was promised at the beginning, but less than we wanted. The Prime Minister made ​​a good decision, very unified in the EU.

It was agreed that the countries from outside the euro zone would also participate in the meetings that will define the new rules of the common market of the competitiveness. This is a sign that the signatories of the pact approach a serious politics. Fortunately we will be there.

I am waiting for responses of Polish conservatives, Z. Ziobro and J. Kaczynski. I will especially follow their comments on the decision of Hungary, which also joined the fiscal pact.

The worst that could happen at today’s summit on the fiscal pact, would be either a total success of Poland, or a complete failure.

A total success (they invite us, we sign, Sarkozy smiles) would give a reason for fanfare and an evidence of our country’s powerfulness and and its enlightened leadership. But this is not true. In turn, a lack of Polish signature under the treaty would be the actual exclusion of the country from the hard core of the Union. Probably Jaroslaw Kaczynski would then be rubbing his hands and, who knows, maby he would even praise the Prime Minister!

There is probably a room for a third solution – neither at the table, nor on the menu, but for example in the kitchen. This is a good place, because although you cannot nibble, but at least you can learn how meals are prepared.