Speaking at a press conference in Warsaw on Tuesday, Sikorski also highlighted renewed momentum in EU enlargement talks with Albania, Polish state news agency reported.
Sikorski said Poland held the presidency during “a time of great uncertainty,” and praised the presidency’s motto, "Security, Europe," as timely and effective.
He noted that Denmark, which took over the rotating presidency on July 1, chose to continue the focus on defense and stability with its own slogan: "A strong Europe in a changing world."
Among the Polish presidency's main accomplishments, Sikorski listed the launch of SAFE, a new EU fund to support investment in the defense sector; the EU’s security and defense partnerships with the UK and Canada; and the adoption of key strategic documents including a European Defense White Paper and the ReArm Europe plan.
Sikorski also pointed to financial support for Ukraine. He confirmed that the EU had transferred a second tranche of EUR 1.9 billion to Kyiv, using interest generated by frozen Russian assets.
He added that two new sanctions packages, numbers 16 and 17, had been adopted, while a draft 18th package is ready but is currently being blocked by Hungary.
“That text is being held up only by Hungarian nationalists,” Sikorski said.
The minister said that under the Polish presidency, 372 ships from Russia’s so-called “shadow fleet” were added to EU sanctions lists.
If the 18th sanctions package is adopted, the number will rise to 477.
“This matters not only for cutting Russian oil export profits, which finance the war, but also for environmental safety in the Baltic Sea,” he said.
Shadow fleet vessels evade not just financial controls and customs formalities but safety checks, too. Experts expect that many of them are not seaworthy and are, therefore, also not insurable.
Sikorski stressed progress on EU enlargement, including the launch of two new negotiating clusters with Albania, covering the internal market and inclusive economic growth.
However, he criticized Hungary’s government for blocking the opening of similar negotiations with Ukraine, despite what he described as Poland’s “best efforts.”
The minister also noted that Poland had restored the practice of inviting foreign ministers from EU candidate countries to informal Gymnich-format meetings. He said this included not just Ukraine, but also countries such as Turkey.
Asked how to overcome Hungary’s resistance to Ukraine’s accession process, Sikorski said the dispute centers on minority rights.
While Hungary wants Ukraine to guarantee that existing rights for its Hungarian minority will not be reduced, Sikorski argued that the European benchmark should be the Council of Europe’s Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities.
That convention calls for bilingual signage, minority-language schooling, and the right to use minority languages in public offices in regions where minorities exceed 20 percent of the population.
Sikorski reminded journalists that Poland has now begun another presidency, this time of the Council of the Baltic Sea States.
He said the organization, which was founded in 1992, has grown in importance since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Russia’s membership was suspended in 2022, and Moscow later formally withdrew.
(rt/gs)
Source: PAP