Former President of the Republic of Poland Andrzej Duda was one of the guests at the 35th Economic Forum in Karpacz. In a conversation with Krzysztof Stanowski, he returned to one of the most symbolic decisions of his presidency – awarding Volodymyr Zelensky the Order of the White Eagle. Duda argued that in the realities of 2022 it was a deliberate and correct decision. At the same time, he noted that today the situation of Poland and Ukraine is already different.
The meeting of the former president with Krzysztof Stanowski was among the events of the second day of the Economic Forum in Karpacz. The conversation concerned both Andrzej Duda’s life after finishing two terms, and the current political situation in Poland. However, the former president devoted the most space to Ukraine and his relationship with Volodymyr Zelensky.
Duda returned to the decision to honor the Ukrainian president with the Order of the White Eagle. As he emphasized, it was not a random gesture.
With full deliberation, I awarded Volodymyr Zelensky the Order of the White Eagle. I will tell you why. I decided that for Poles, for future Polish politicians, for current ones and for others, he should serve as a model of how a president should behave in such a difficult situation as the one he found himself in.
The Polish authorities in 1939 did not know how to behave like that. They fled in the face of the German onslaught, and later also the Soviet one, but in fact they basically fled already in the face of the Germans.
And President Karol Nawrocki, despite the fact that half the world or three quarters of the world concluded that Ukraine would fall within three days, because let’s not kid ourselves, that’s how it was…
Krzysztof Stanowski: – President Zelensky.
Andrzej Duda: – I’m sorry, President Zelensky. He stayed in Kyiv. I spoke with him then. Believe me, he was ready to give his life. I am absolutely convinced of that to this day.
I spoke with him then face to face, in a closed room. I know what that man said to me, I know what that president said to me. And I will always say this to Ukrainians, our neighbors: he should be a hero of Ukraine for ever and ever for what he did in 2022, standing on the Maidan, using his media talent, his media skills, and proclaiming to the whole world via social media platforms that he would not back down, that he and his people would stay in Kyiv to the very end, would not give up, and also calling for the defense of Ukraine.
If he had been gone, ladies and gentlemen, I am convinced that it would not have been possible to defend Kyiv and there would not be a sovereign and independent Ukraine today. (Source: Kanał Zero)
The former president recalled the first months of the full-scale Russian invasion. In his view, Zelensky’s stance was of enormous importance for mobilizing Ukrainian society and defending the capital.
Duda said that he had spoken with the Ukrainian leader directly many times and was convinced that in the first days of the Russian aggression he was ready to remain in the country even at the cost of his own life.
He used all his media talent to communicate to the world and above all to his compatriots that he and his people would not flee and would fight. He inspired the nation, and that is precisely why Kyiv did not fall – he assessed.
The former president also emphasized that Poland’s support for Ukraine did not stem solely from solidarity. Poland’s direct security was at stake. Duda recalled that one of the key objectives was to prevent a situation in which Russian troops would find themselves directly on Poland’s border.
“Today the situation is different”
At the same time, Duda stressed that his assessment of the decision made in 2022 does not mean that he would act in the same way under today’s circumstances.
According to the former president, four years of war have changed both Ukraine and its leaders, as well as the social situation in Poland. He pointed to the enormous number of Ukrainian casualties and the pressure Zelensky has been under for years.
He also spoke about the changing attitude of part of Polish society after Poland took in a large number of refugees.
We showed tremendous empathy, but that was in 2022. How long can you endure having strangers under one roof? – Duda said.
It was precisely this change in circumstances that the former president used to explain the differences between his approach at the start of the full-scale war and Karol Nawrocki’s current policy.
Duda also argued that if he found himself again in the realities of 2022, he would not change his decision regarding Zelensky.
Duda on Nawrocki: “I hope he will be a better president than me”
The conversation also concerned Andrzej Duda’s successor. The former president noted that Karol Nawrocki holds office under different political conditions and has a different style of presidency.
Duda declared his support for the incumbent head of state and said that after the end of his term he would like to be able to say that Nawrocki turned out to be the better president.
As he explained, it is not about personal rivalry but about the interest of the state – Poland should have ever better presidents, prime ministers, ministers, and members of parliament.
Ten years of watching the world “through glass”
There were also much lighter topics. Stanowski asked the former president about life after leaving the Presidential Palace.
Duda admitted that during his ten years in office he missed, among other things, ordinary trips with his wife. The president’s foreign visits, although they made it possible to get into places inaccessible to most people, did not allow for getting to know the countries visited in a normal way.
The former president also spoke about getting back behind the wheel. For security reasons during his presidency, he could not drive a car himself.
The biggest change after leaving office, however, is—as he admitted—the lack of responsibility for every ongoing political situation.
Andrzej Duda ended his second term after ten years in office. During the Forum in Karpacz, he argued that he does not regret the decisions he made as president—including those that, even after years, still spark political disputes.
