Mateusz Morawiecki made the appeal at a news briefing in Brussels on Wednesday, public broadcaster Polish Radio’s IAR news agency reported.
He was speaking after a summit meeting between European Union leaders and their counterparts from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
Morawiecki told reporters: “Condemning Russian aggression against Ukraine in talks with Asian partners was a success for us and several other delegations. Explaining what this aggression is really about is an important part of building alliances.”
He added: “Russia is waging war in Ukraine, but it is also waging an economic war with Europe. Under this economic war, Russia is doing everything to drive gas and oil prices as high as possible.”
He urged: “So for our part, we should limit gas and oil prices as much as possible.”
The Polish prime minister said that “while our discussions with the Americans over the past two weeks have resulted in a kind of compromise regarding a cap on the prices of oil, here in the EU we still haven’t reached common ground, mostly with several countries from northern Europe.”
He added that "the countries in question" were reluctant to cap the price even at the level of EUR 180-190 per MWh, which “is very important in ensuring long-term predictability for Polish and European businesses.”
Morawiecki appealed: “So I encourage our EU partners to be more courageous, to simply use this powerful economic force that the European Union has, instead of hiding in corners.”
He told reporters that Poland was "encouraging other countries to make the sanctions regime" against Russia "as extensive as possible and above all, real.”
On Thursday, Morawiecki is set to take part in the European Council summit in the Belgian capital, officials said.
EU leaders are expected to discuss the consequences of Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, the situation on the energy market, as well as security and defence issues, state news agency PAP reported.
Wednesday was day 294 of Russia’s war on Ukraine.
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Source: IAR, PAP, gazetaprawna.pl