Tusk Urges Opposition to Unite to Save Poland’s Ailing Democracy

  • Parties lack riposte to nationalist rule, divided by ambitions
  • Former premier says he’s a ‘public enemy’ of ruling party
Protests against Poland’s almost complete ban on abortions, in Warsaw, on Jan. 29.Photographer: Omar Marques/Getty Images
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Poland’s opposition must unite to win the next election and restore democratic values in a country slipping toward “soft authoritarianism,” former Premier Donald Tusk said in an interview.

Tusk, who served as prime minister between 2007 and 2014 and went on to become Poland’s highest-ranking official ever in the European Union, said the fragmented opposition, including the Civic Platform group he co-founded, is divided by personal ambitions and lacks a shared vision of how to win back power.