Poland Votes For EU Autonomy from China’s Electric Cars: Against Berlin, Budapest and Bratislava

Central and Eastern Europe is greatly divided on the EU’s strategic autonomy. Czechia blocks collective EU response to the Middle East, but it also abstains from a vote on tariffs for Chinese electric vehicles – as Hungary, Slovakia and Slovenia vote against. This leaves Poland and the Baltics to find unlikely allies in France and Italy.

Read our latest policy brief for how CEE drives EU strategic communication, for better or worse.

Upcoming on Visegrad Insight:

• Janka Oertel and Alicja Bachulska applaud new tariffs on EVs, which pave the way for more strategic decisions on the EU’s economic security
• Oana Popescu breaks down all the ways new members will improve the EU
• Ivan Us examines how Russia uses food as a weapon
• Eva Mihočková analyses disinformation trends in Central Europe
• Look out for content from a discussion we held last week between Visegrad Insight Fellow Bartosz Wieliński and editor Staś Kaleta

Czechia blocks collective EU response to Middle Eastern crisis

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• The EU failed to issue a joint message calling for a cease-fire between Israel and Hezbollah following an emergency meeting of FMs on 30 September – after a disagreement with Czechia, prompting Josep Borrell to issue a statement on his own.
• ‘The declaration unilaterally limited Israel’s right to self-defence against Hezbollah terrorists who have been shelling civilians in northern Israel for months,’ said Daniel Drake, the Czech MFA spokesperson, in a statement. ‘At the same time, we demanded to add text on the withdrawal of Hezbollah from Israel’s borders.’
• In recent months, Czechia, Hungary and Austria have pushed to water down collective action that they deemed overly critical of Israel.
• You can learn more about how Europe should navigate the crisis here.

• As in other CEE nations, Polish FM Radosław Sikorski again appealed for Poles who do not have to stay in Lebanon to leave as Israel continues to carry out airstrikes across the country, while MFA spokesman Paweł Wronski said the government had agreed to come to the aid of those still in the country.

• EU member states voted for the European Commission (EC) to impose up to 45% tariffs on imports of Chinese electric vehicles. Ten EU members backed the measures, five voted against, and 12 abstained.
• From CEE, Poland, the Baltics, and Bulgaria voted in favour; Hungary, Slovakia, and Slovenia voted against it; and Czechia, Romania, Croatia, and Austria abstained.
• Beijing had previously threatened to deploy retaliatory countermeasures, targeting specific EU members in key EU export sectors, including pork, brandy and dairy.
• Read this thread from Visegrad Insight fellow Matej Šimalčik for more breakdown, and this for how to craft economic security in Europe.

• Migration has been added to the list of topics up for discussion at the EU Council summit on 17 October, with a particular focus on ‘strengthening control of the EU’s external borders’ – according to a draft seen by Politico.
• This follows far-right electoral wins in Austria, France, Germany and the Netherlands, as well as Germany’s decision to impose controls on all its land borders – a move which has raised concerns among EU officials, who fear it could prompt other countries to follow suit and thus weaken Schengen, as per the Financial Times (FT).
• France’s junior minister for Europe, Benjamin Haddad, has said Paris will push Brussels to get tougher on irregular migration – but will also: ‘include the security imperatives of our partners and especially those who are on the border with Russia and feel legitimately threatened. And we will have to explain that a strong Europe is one that invests in its military to protect them, to protect all 27.’
• Read here for the importance of enlargement amid a right-ward shift in Europe.

• The Kremlin has said it is open to a compromise that could see its troops leave Georgia‘s Moscow-backed breakaway regions, Russian FM Sergey Lavrov said at the UN General Assembly in New York – a clear sign that Russia feels pretty comfortable about Georgia’s direction and its upcoming elections.
• Georgia also signed a Kremlin-inspired anti-LGBTQ+ bill into law on 3 October, introduced by the governing Georgian Dream party, which bans same-sex marriage, adoption by same-sex couples and depictions of LGBTQ+ people in media.

Rutte signals Ukrainian focus as new NATO Secretary General – and Stoltenberg offers parting advice

UKRAINE