Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski has claimed that opponents of Prime Minister Donald Tusk's judicial overhaul are being assisted by Russian bots, as part of an "alliance" between Russian accounts and the global far right. This assertion comes amid a deepening rule-of-law crisis in Poland, which has seen President Karol Nawrocki denounce judges who attempted to seize control of the judiciary.
The crisis began when a judge announced the removal of the conservative Constitution Tribunal President and the installation of an interim head, a move that has been denounced as a "coup" and has no precedent in Polish constitutional law. Prime Minister Tusk has also blamed the crisis on Russia, stating that the opposition is finding support among pro-Russian forces worldwide and is using an army of Russian bots online.
The Polish government's attempts to link the opposition to Russia have been met with amusement by the Kremlin, with Dimitry Medvedev mocking the idea that Russia is responsible for every crisis. The situation in Poland remains tense, with protests and demonstrations taking place in front of the Polish Constitutional Court in Warsaw.
The government's claims about Russian involvement have become a key part of their narrative about the crisis, with Sikorski warning that the alliance between Russian accounts and the global far right should give everyone "food for thought" about who is stirring things up in Poland.