Too early to hold summit between EU, Russian leaders – Polish PM

A proposal by Germany and France to hold a summit between EU and Russian leaders has been attacked by the Polish prime minister, who said it would be a "reward” for the Russian president and his aggressive policies.

Mateusz Morawiecki’s attack on the proposed summit came before the start of the second day of an EU summit in Brussels.

Poland along and the Baltic states have mounted fierce resistance in the EU to the idea of the summit, which was proposed in a surprise move late on Wednesday.

"Indeed, there was a proposal by Germany and France for the leaders to meet," said Morawiecki. "I and many other leaders, especially those from the Baltic states, but not only, believe that it is far too early to do so, and that today it would serve as a reward for the President of Russia for his firm but, unfortunately, aggressive policies, the provocation of neighbours and various types of attacks.

"Here, Poland rejected this German proposal, because we believe that it would be a sign of appreciation for President Putin, rather than a punishment for aggressive policies," he continued.

Germany and France broached the possibility of organising an EU summit in Brussels with the participation of President Vladimir Putin, similar to the meeting held between US and Russian leaders in Geneva.

Morawiecki pointed out that relations with Russia had dominated the talks on Thursday, and had also divided EU leaders.

Ultimately, no consensus was reached in the issue, which was announced by Chancellor Angela Merkel in an interview with journalists.