Nationalist candidate Karol Nawrocki won the second round of Poland's presidential election with 50.89% of the vote.
Reuters writes that the result seriously blows the pro-European government's reform agenda.
Prime Minister Donald Tusk came to power in 2023 with a broad alliance of left-wing and centrist parties, promising to reverse changes introduced by the nationalist Law and Justice (PiS) party. The European Union says these changes have undermined democracy, women's rights, and minority rights.
However, the reforms have not progressed, mainly because the government claims that incumbent President Andrzej Duda, a PiS ally, has vetoed the bills. Nawrocki is also expected to continue to block them.
While Nawrocki supports providing military aid to Ukraine, he opposes Kyiv's annexation of the Western alliances, including NATO. He also said he would not agree to the proposal to station Polish troops on Ukrainian territory.
Navrotsky denied allegations that he was pro-Russian, stressing that Poland has the right to raise sensitive issues with Kyiv, such as the exhumation of the remains of Polish victims killed by Ukrainian nationalists during World War II.
