The EU is upset with Poland because it doesn’t uphold “European Values”. In response, the EU threatens Article 7.

Background

Article 2 of EU treaty demands countries in the EU Promote and Safeguard European Values Article 7 is a sanctions procedure that the EU can impose on countries the EU deems to have violated Article 2. Article 7 has never been used.

Sanctions include removal of voting rights.

Poland has irked the EU because of judicial reforms the EU does not agree with, and also because Poland (along with Hungary and the Czech Republic) refuses to accept migrants.

Germany and France Back Article 7 Proceedings

In response to Poland’s actions, an Official Says EU Likely to Give Poland Unprecedented Warning.

The European Union’s executive Commission will likely decide next week to trigger an unprecedented procedure against Poland that could move the country closer to losing its voting rights in the EU, a top official said Friday.

The move would involve a formal warning to Poland that it sees a “clear risk of a serious breach” of European values in new bills that overhaul the judicial system.

Poland’s new Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki tried to persuade leaders at an EU summit in Brussels ending Friday that the bills do not violate democratic values.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Emmanuel Macron voiced hopes that the step won’t be necessary, but vowed to back the Commission if it comes to that.

Merkel’s Last Stand

Tom Luongo calls the Article 7 threat “Merkel’s Last Stand”

Poland and the rest of the Visigrad Four – Hungary, Czech Republic and Slovakia – are headed for a collision course with the rest of Western Europe.

Invoking Article 7 will eventually allow the European Parliament to rescind all economic aid to Poland and its voting rights within the body. While at that same time not allowing Poland free access to international trade because it will not be an independent nation at that point.

Any move to extricate itself from the EU politically or practically will be met with the most strident opposition. Look no further than Brexit talks and the brutal put-down of Catalonia’s independence movement to see Poland’s future.

The first step is a political reprimand. But, the problem for Merkel and the EU in general is that Poland’s ruling Law and Justice party is more popular than ever thanks to its opposition to her nonsense.

The same thing is happening across all of Eastern Europe. The Czechs just elected their version of Donald Trump, Andrej Babis. The Austrians put together a coalition government this week comprised of the two most anti-immigration parties in the country.

And their new Foreign Minister wasn’t on the job more than a couple of days before publicly declaring Austria would be ending its economic sanctionsagainst Russia which have been in place since 2014 over Russia’s reunification with Crimea.

I wonder how well that’s going to go over the next time the council of EU Foreign Ministers gets together. EU sanctions require unanimity or the measure is rescinded.