Donald Tusk acknowledges government setbacks and defends leadership at Campus Polska

Ethical limits and political power

Donald Tusk addressed youth participants on 28 August 2026 at the Campus Polska Przyszlosci festival in Olsztyn. The five-day gathering, founded by Warsaw Mayor Rafal Trzaskowski at the University of Warmia and Mazury, brought together cabinet ministers, parliamentarians, and civic activists. Tusk dedicated his opening remarks to political ethics, warning against the normalization of aggression, cynicism, and brutality in European and global public life. During his address, he recounted two moments in his personal life where he lacked the courage to confront violence, describing those memories as an enduring burden on his conscience. He also aimed indirect criticisms at President Karol Nawrocki, pointing to past controversies over an elderly citizen's apartment and pressure exerted against journalists.

I will not agree that if someone is strong, they can extort an apartment from someone helpless and elderly, or that someone can wave their fist and intimidate a journalist. I will not agree that the state organizes itself like a mafia in order to rob its own nation and its own state in broad daylight without any shame.

Investigations and legislative resistance

During the question-and-answer session, participants questioned the prime minister regarding the progress of his government over its three years in office. Tusk acknowledged personal disappointment regarding the slow pace of legal accountability for officials from the previous Law and Justice (PiS) administration. He stated that expediting prosecutions without strict adherence to courts, prosecutors, and human rights standards would undermine democratic principles. The prime minister added that institutional resistance and inertia among officials who remain loyal to the former administration continue to delay these proceedings. Addressing social reforms, Tusk noted that statutory guarantees for abortion access and minority rights remain blocked by presidential opposition from Andrzej Duda and Karol Nawrocki, requiring the government to rely on health ministry guidelines and prosecutorial directives instead.

The whole process, and it often takes a very long time, is sometimes sabotaged by some officials. Some miss the PiS era and think to themselves, 'I will wait it out, I will do nothing.' Yes, that is the truth, those are the conditions under which I work, but here I feel a sense of failure.

Leadership scrutiny and diplomatic tensions

The discussion shifted to electoral politics and Tusk's personal standing ahead of parliamentary elections scheduled in roughly a year. An attendee cited polling showing Tusk's negative approval ratings near 60%, noting that former Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki reached similar disapproval only after seven years of PiS governance. The attendee asked whether Tusk's ambition risked harming his coalition and whether he would consider stepping down in favor of another Civic Platform leader. Tusk rejected the suggestion, arguing that political leadership cannot simply be handed over to another figure. In response to questions about technology regulation and foreign relations, Tusk also addressed the dispute between Polish entrepreneur Rafal Brzoska and Meta, explaining the challenge of protecting domestic digital standards while preserving security cooperation with the United States.

You are asking me whether I would now, before the elections, hand over power to someone better than me in my political camp. Just understand me well. If there were someone better, they would take this power.