If Europe is to find a stronger voice on the world stage, its leaders must learn to leave their domestic squabbles at the village gates.

Poland’s just-concluded six-month stint at the helm of the EU delivered one notable triumph: the Security Action for Europe (SAFE) instrument designed to boost common defence procurement – a rare feat of consensus in an increasingly fractious bloc.

Yet beyond this key win, Warsaw’s presidency offered more fizzle than fireworks.

Many had hoped that Poland’s Prime Minister Donald Tusk, a Brussels veteran who returned to power on a surge of pro-European enthusiasm, would inject fresh vigour into his country’s EU ambitions and in rallying support for Ukraine.

Instead, Warsaw quickly drifted into an avoidable row with Kyiv over grain imports and renewed historical grievances, overshadowing any serious effort at strategic rapprochement between the two neighbours just as American support was beginning to waver.

There was no grand “Coalition of the Willing” summit on Ukraine, no flagship initiative to revive Europe’s waning wartime solidarity. In the end, Poland’s image as Kyiv’s staunchest ally has been badly dented.

Tusk’s final remarks to the press at the end of a rather bland June summit – usually an opportunity for presidencies to take a victory lap and trumpet their achievements – were lacklustre. A meeting with the Polish national press the day after descended into a parochial affair, dominated by questions on domestic affairs and Tusk’s barbs against his conservative opposition.

For months, Tusk’s government held back from bold policy moves, blaming the looming presidential election – which they lost regardless. Having done precious little to actually shape EU policy, Poland now hands over the rotating presidency, leaving Tusk to face a brewing domestic storm. On the menu: a fragmented parliament, swelling farmer protests, and a surging extreme far-right led by Sławomir Mentzen, which could shake up the political scene before the next parliamentary polls in 2027 (or earlier).

The past six months have highlighted a chronic Brussels affliction: big countries should, in theory, have the heft to shape collective decisions regardless of local distractions. But when national leaders are too distracted by domestic concerns, their European agendas are invariably hijacked.

Poland is not alone in this.

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AI delay – Lobbyists are making a last-ditch attempt to delay rules for General Purpose AI (GPAI), ahead of the European Commission’s expected publication of the much-anticipated voluntary Code of Practice in the coming days.

Greek healthcare goes digital – Greece is advancing its digital health agenda with the rollout of a comprehensive digital health data infrastructure, part of a broader push to modernise its healthcare system.

Cyprus-Turkey olive branch – Cyprus said on Monday it would invite arch-foe Turkey to a summit during its European Union presidency next year despite a decades-long rift over Ankara’s 1974 invasion and its backing of a breakaway state on the divided island.

Poles poll the polls – Some 40% of Poles say it is possible the recent presidential election may have been rigged, according to a new SW Research poll for Rzeczpospolita.

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