POLAND: Pegasus Spyware Investigation & more – 6th Mar 2025

Witam from BA! This is the Rorshok Poland Update from the 6th of March twenty twenty-five. A quick summary of what's going down in Poland.

Let’s start with security updates. On Tuesday, the 4th, President Duda spoke at a special UN General Assembly session about the Russian-Ukrainian war. He said that Russia's imperial ambitions threatened peace, sovereignty, and territorial integrity. Duda reflected on his time as president and pointed out that the threat from Russia has increased, particularly after its twenty fourteen invasion of Ukraine.

He said that this attack was the beginning of Russia’s attempts to disrupt global stability. He commended Poland's security measures, saying that without them, Russia might have advanced further into Europe.

Speaking of security, on Sunday, the 2nd, hackers targeted the Polish Space Agency or POLSA and the country's cybersecurity services, trying to break into and disrupt their systems. The Ministry of Digital Affairs suspects the attackers were Russian.

Krzysztof Gawkowski, Poland's Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Digitization, said they are focusing on protecting the agency's sensitive government data, and identifying what was affected. The National Computer Security Incident Response Team and the Ministry of National Defence are helping POLSA restore operations and find out who carried out the attack.

On Friday, the 28th, Radosław Sikorski, the Foreign Minister, visited Japan and met with Japanese officials to discuss defense collaboration, including cybersecurity, space technologies, and drones. He also spoke about Poland’s important role in helping other countries support Ukraine by providing logistics and infrastructure. At the same time, he pointed out how crucial it is for Poland to focus on protecting its borders, especially with Russia and Belarus.

He also visited the Yokosuka naval base and toured the historic battleship Mikasa, a symbol of Japan’s victory over Russia, to showcase Poland's interest in deepening military cooperation with Japan.

Meanwhile, the investigation into the illegal use of Pegasus spyware by the Law and Justice party to spy on opposition politicians from twenty fifteen to twenty twenty-three is still ongoing. On Tuesday, the 4th, the investigation commission fined Mariusz Kamiński, the former Minister of the Interior, and Maciej Wąsik, a deputy minister, 3,000 zloty, which is about 700 dollars, for refusing to testify in the parliamentary inquiry.

Kamiński and Wąsik said the fines were politically motivated and that the inquiry was unconstitutional, citing a ruling from the Constitutional Tribunal. The commission warned if Wąsik kept refusing to testify, he would be forced to do so.

In more legal matters. On Tuesday, the 4th, Poland's Central Anti-Corruption Bureau arrested two former leaders of the State Fire Service and two other senior officials in a case involving fake diplomas from Collegium Humanum University in Warsaw. According to the investigation, the university offered fake MBA programs that helped some officials advance in public administration and state-owned companies without having the necessary education.

The Fire Academy, formerly known as the Main School of Fire Service, worked with Collegium Humanum to allow officers to enroll in these programs to gain promotions and higher positions.

The investigation is still ongoing, with fifty-eight people charged with a total of 321 offenses. Prosecutors encouraged those involved to come forward to potentially avoid harsher criminal charges.

On Monday, the 3rd, a medical court in Katowice, a city in southern Poland, suspended one doctor for five years and two others for two years for not providing necessary care, including not terminating a pregnancy, which led to the death of thirty-year-old Izabela in twenty twenty-one. The doctors did not perform an abortion due to the strict abortion law in Poland despite the clear danger to her life.

Some doctors are unsure about what qualifies as a legitimate threat to a woman's life, and others fear legal consequences, causing delays in care, since they take too long to determine if an abortion should be carried out. Izabela’s death led to protests across Poland, as many blame the doctors' inaction for her death. The legal process is still ongoing, and the doctors may face prison sentences of up to five years.

Next up, updates on the economy. On Wednesday, the 5th, the Ministry of Funds and Regional Policy announced that Poland will create a new Security and Defense Fund worth thirty billion zloty, which is nearly nine billion dollars, as part of the National Recovery Plan. This plan is Poland's strategic initiative to help the country recover economically after the COVID-19 pandemic.

The fund will support projects with both civilian and defense purposes, such as the construction of roads and shelters. Additionally, it will help Polish defense companies boost their production capacity. The government will also shift some funds from the Green Transformation of Cities program to assist local governments in investing in similar projects.

In other developments, on Wednesday, the UK immigration office announced that Polish citizens can apply for the Electronic Travel Authorization or ETA starting from the 5th of March, which will be mandatory from the 2nd of April. The ETA is a digital permit for entry or transit, allowing stays up to six months, but it doesn’t allow work or permanent residency.

ETA will replace the Electronic Visa Waiver or EVW and applies to most travelers, except those with British passports or settled status. The application fee will increase from twelve dollars to sixteen dollars, and processing may take up to three business days. Poles could travel to the UK without applying for any permit in advance under the previous EVW system, whereas the new ETA system introduces an additional step, requiring travelers to apply and get approval before traveling, although the process remains relatively simple and quick.

Also on Wednesday, the Polish Post paused its group layoff program and will make decisions about future staff changes in the fall. The company promised workers that March pay would be the same or higher, assuring that the changes in salary wouldn't cause layoffs.

The Polish Post is currently undergoing a transformation due to financial problems to become a more diverse company, focusing on delivery, retail, financial, and digital services. The plan involves staff changes through voluntary departures and layoffs. Last year, the Polish Post lost 300 million zloty, which is sixty-nine million dollars, with the president of the company saying that the cause was past mistakes.

On a positive note, On Monday, the 3rd, TVP, Poland's state television, launched a new Ukrainian-language channel called Slawa TV, aimed at Ukrainian viewers worldwide. Slawa TV is a collaboration between Poland and Ukraine to counter Russian propaganda and promote democracy in Central Europe.

The channel provides news and updates about Ukraine and global events affecting the country. It also covers Ukraine's EU and NATO goals and shows Poland’s views on its relationship with Ukraine. The channel broadcasts daily with two-time slots: from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. and 9 p.m. to 10 p.m. Warsaw time.

On the same day,, Foreign Minister Sikorski congratulated Kieran Culkin on winning the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor in A Real Pain. The film, shot in Poland and co-financed by the Polish Film Institute, follows Culkin’s character, Benji Kaplan, as he travels through Poland with his cousin David Kaplan, who Jesse Eisenberg portrays, to honor their late grandmother. The story explores loss, memories, and self-discovery while also connecting to Polish history and Jewish heritage.

Sikorski praised the film’s universal message and its role in showcasing Poland’s cultural and historical landscape to a global audience.

On that note about Jesse Eisenberg, on Wednesday, the 5th, President Andrzej Duda granted the American actor with Polish-Jewish roots Polish citizenship during his visit to the US. President Duda praised Eisenberg for honoring his heritage and reconnecting with Poland. Eisenberg thanked Polish historians at the Majdanek concentration camp memorial in Lublin, in eastern Poland, for their work in preserving Holocaust history.

Aaand that’s it for this week! Thank you for joining us!

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Do zobaczenia!