Poland's speaker calls Trump 'irrational'

The speaker of Poland's parliament has slammed United States President Donald Trump for his "chaotic" leadership, and for meddling in European politics.

Wlodzimierz Czarzasty told the Financial Times newspaper Trump has proven to be a destabilizing force who has such an aggressive foreign policy that other world leaders are too scared to speak out.

"Trump is becoming a leader of chaos and I think that, in many cases, Trump's behavior is absolutely irrational," said Czarzasty, who leads Poland's left-wing Nowa Lewica party, which is part of Prime Minister Donald Tusk's ruling coalition. "Individual countries and people are still afraid to discuss this."

Czarzasty, who became speaker of Poland's lower house of parliament in November, said comments and visits by Trump and US Vice-President JD Vance in support of Prime Minister Viktor Orban during his re-election bid in Hungary were completely unacceptable.

"JD Vance has been full of slogans about freedom and non-interference in the democratic processes of another state, but what he now did (by visiting Hungary during campaigning) was exactly the opposite," Czarzasty told the FT.

It is not the first time he has criticized Trump and his administration. In February, he said the US president should not be considered for a Nobel Peace Prize, which he is known to covet, because of alleged violations of international law. His comments prompted the US ambassador to Poland, Tom Rose, to say Czarzasty had delivered "outrageous and unprovoked insults".

Czarzasty said in his interview with the Financial Times on the weekend that Trump's behavior seems to make little sense.

"People cannot understand a person who longs for the Nobel Peace Prize and at the same time initiates wars," he said. "People cannot understand why new bodies have to be created, like Trump's Board of Peace, when we have NATO, the UN, and the EU."

Czarzasty is, however, out of step with many politicians in Poland, which is a strong supporter of the US. President Karol Nawrocki said recently a US base in Poland should be renamed "Fort Trump" in honor of the US leader.

But, according to recent opinion polls, Polish people, while still pro-American, are starting to worry about Trump's leadership. In January, Polish pollster CBOS found 60 percent had expressed concern.

earle@mail.chinadailyuk.com