Friday marks the second day of the European Council meeting, attended by Prime Minister Donald Tusk. In the morning, the new head of government is scheduled to meet with the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen.

At **4:00 PM** at the Presidential Palace, President Andrzej Duda and his wife, Agata Kornhauser-Duda, will receive the Bethlehem Peace Light from scouts of the Polish Scouting Association. Representatives of scout organizations under the Honorary Patronage of the President of the Republic of Poland will participate in the ceremony.

- The holidays are approaching. This special, warm time. A time of hope and gifts. Soon, children, youth, and educators will receive a gift. In Lesser Poland, especially in Krakow - announced Bartłomiej Sienkiewicz in a recording published on social media.

- Details at 11:30 AM in Krakow - added Barbara Nowacka.

- As we observe the events of the last few hours, it might seem that these funds [from the KPO] are being practically pushed upon us, that there are mountains of money lying there, ready to be scooped up. Unfortunately, nothing of the sort has happened in recent years, and this only proves, if indeed, because a press conference by von der Leyen and Donald Tusk is announced for today. If it were to turn out that it will be announced there that Poland is receiving money from the KPO, on the one hand, it's good because Poland has been entitled to these funds for a long time. But on the other hand, it will be the crown jewel proof that no rule of law, no conditions. No milestones, however anyone calls it, mattered, and that it was purely a political game to weaken the PiS government – stated Radosław Fogiel in the program "24 pytania" on PR24.

- If it turns out that Polish entrepreneurs, Polish citizens, and Poland's development, which could have been accelerated by these funds, were held hostage by Donald Tusk's Brussels colleagues solely to help him win the elections, we will speak loudly about it – he added.

- I believe that significant information will also come from Brussels today regarding the consequences of these very actions. I would like to note that many of these milestones were in fact already addressed by the act from June 2022, which introduced many changes. Let us also remember that part of the milestones involved reinstating judges to their judicial duties. Everyone has returned, even Judge Juszczyszyn is now presiding in his parent court - stated Adam Bodnar on TVN24's "Jeden na jeden".

– If it was actually supposed to be that way, then why was no payment request for KPO funds ever submitted? This shows that something was indeed missing, and it seems to me that the fundamental factor is trust. If we declare that we are doing something, we will do everything in our power to do it – stated Adam Bodnar on TVN24's "Jeden na jeden" program.

- I think that next week there will be work on these resolutions [concerning the legality of the KRS and the Constitutional Tribunal]. What is important in the context of these resolutions is that everything needs to be well prepared, but also certain events have occurred, I won't hide it, we've been waiting for this a bit, certain matters that also have significant importance from the perspective of the resolutions. Yesterday was an absolute great success for the lawyers, Ms. Agata Bzdyń and Karolina Ferenc from the Federation for Women and Family Planning, namely the ECtHR ruling against Poland, which concerned access to legal abortion, i.e., the consequences of the infamous Constitutional Tribunal ruling - stated Adam Bodnar in "Jeden na jeden" on TVN24.

- This year, there is a reference to two substitute judges, to Judge Piskorski and Judge Wyrembak. So now we have not just one Strasbourg ruling, but we already have another ruling, and an even more fundamental one - he continued.

- This is a good solution, making parents' lives easier. If there are doubts, I would lean towards some local, for example, municipal referendums. As for primary schools, this should be seen as an action aimed at making citizens' lives easier - stated Bronisław Komorowski on the program "Gość Radia Zet".

- I too was labelled 'Komoruski' by this camp, which is offensive in the context of my family's history. Just as the accusation of being a German agent is offensive in the context of Donald Tusk's family history, his grandfathers who were conscious Poles of Kashubian origin, when everyone was denying their Polishness - stated Bronisław Komorowski on the program "Gość Radia Zet".

- Are the elections already here? Just a moment, why are you in such a hurry? Of course, I could vote for Szymon Hołownia, I could vote for Rafał Trzaskowski. We'll see - stated Bronisław Komorowski on the program "Guest of Radio Zet".

- The historic decision by the European Council to open accession negotiations with Ukraine and Moldova has become a reality! Poland has always supported the EU enlargement process. Many did not believe when we started the fight for the launch of negotiations with Ukraine - wrote President Andrzej Duda on Twitter.

Historyczna decyzja Rady Europejskiej o otwarciu negocjacji akcesyjnych z Ukrainą i Mołdawią stała się faktem! Polska zawsze wspierała proces rozszerzenia ??. Wielu nie wierzyło, gdy rozpoczynaliśmy walkę o start negocjacji z Ukrainą. Gratulacje @ZelenskyyUa @sandumaiamd!…

— Andrzej Duda (@AndrzejDuda) December 15, 2023

The Commission is ready to transfer €5 billion to Poland as pre-financing, which is an advance payment. This will help Poland carry out decarbonization efforts and combat climate change, as this is one of the most important priorities for all of us. We need Poland to work with us in this area - she continued.

I would like to conclude by wishing you and your government full success. You can be absolutely certain that the Commission stands by your side - the EC President concluded.

The Minister of National Defence, Deputy Prime Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz, has signed a decision, countersigned by Deputy Minister Cezary Tomczyk, to repeal the decision establishing the so-called Smolensk subcommittee – the ministry announced in a statement.

"The subcommittee is being dissolved, and its members have been obliged to account for all documentation, property, and equipment used for the subcommittee's work by next Monday, December 18, 2023. From today, all authorizations and powers granted to the subcommittee members for activities related to the subcommittee's work are revoked. In the near future, a special team will be appointed to analyze every aspect of the dissolved subcommittee's activities," it was announced.

The Subcommittee for the Re-examination of the Aviation Accident near Smolensk has existed since 2016 and was headed by Antoni Macierewicz.

MON informuje, że 15 grudnia br. Pan Władysław Kosiniak – Kamysz, Wicepremier - minister obrony narodowej, podpisał decyzję, parafowaną przez wiceministra Cezarego Tomczyka, o uchyleniu decyzji powołującej Podkomisję MON ds. ponownego zbadania wypadku lotniczego samolotu… pic.twitter.com/PtIlFdRNBI

— Ministerstwo Obrony Narodowej ?? (@MON_GOV_PL) December 15, 2023

- By decision of the Minister of National Defence and the leadership of the Ministry of National Defence, the liquidation of the Smoleńsk commission is underway. This means that we, as the leadership of the Ministry of National Defence, have decided that the commission known as Antoni Macierewicz's commission will cease to operate immediately. I would also like to inform you that today, all powers of attorney and authorizations for members of the subcommittee and the chairman of the commission, Mr. Macierewicz, to act on behalf of the subcommittee and in matters related to the Smoleńsk subcommittee are being revoked – stated Cezary Tomczyk at a press briefing.

- We will also establish a special team that will analyze every aspect of the Smoleńsk subcommittee's activities, and what seems very important today, a commentary on this matter. I want to emphasize this very strongly and clearly. Today, meaning December 15th, I want to announce to you that this is the end of lies in the name of the Polish state, the end of spending hundreds of millions of zlotys on activities that have nothing to do with explaining the causes of the catastrophe, but have a lot to do with politics – added the Deputy Head of the Ministry of National Defence.

- The minister's first decision must have been prepared earlier. It's not as if the minister conceived of it just this morning; rather, he arrived at the ministry with this decision. First, upon taking over his ministerial duties, he said he would primarily focus on our security, and here we have the disbanding of a commission that overturned Anodina's report, and also overturned the previous report by the Civic Platform and PSL coalition - stated Marek Suski during his media appearance in the Sejm.

- This first decision is a scandalous one. Instead of dealing with matters concerning our security, the work of the commission is being thrown into the trash. As I said, this commission overturned Anodina's lies, which means, one could say, the Smolensk lie will return. This was likely one of the main objectives of Donald Tusk's coalition, to prevent the truth from seeing the light of day, because this truth is simply terrible for them - he added.

- No, it was already announced that Siemens is going bankrupt and needs support, and that windmills should be installed in Poland. If it's precisely to support the German economy, then what is there to celebrate, and windmills will be placed near people's homes – stated Marek Suski during a media address in the Sejm.

- KPO – negotiated by the PiS government. KPO advance payment – negotiated by the Law and Justice government – Mateusz Morawiecki wrote on Twitter.

KPO – wynegocjowane przez rząd @pisorgpl.

Zaliczka z KPO – wynegocjowana przez rząd Prawa i Sprawiedliwości.

— Mateusz Morawiecki (@MorawieckiM) December 15, 2023

- We are closing Macierewicz's committee, but at the same time we are starting to account for all the money he spent and wasted on so-called pseudo-experts and pseudo-reports. These matters must be clarified, people expect it, because it was public money, so the most interesting part is yet to come. What it was spent on, by whom, and for what - stated Dariusz Joński in an interview with Piotr Salak on the program “Popołudniowa rozmowa” on RMF FM.

- Minister Tomczyk has already announced an audit of these expenses today as well, so it will definitely be carried out. People expect full information on what Macierewicz spent this money on, in what quantity, and for whom. And let's remember that he spent this money in order to spread disinformation, so charges may be filed if only a full report is presented, so all of this is yet to come - he added.

- If there were no signed contracts, and one party printed the ballots, I'm referring to PWPW (Polska Wytwórnia Papierów Wartościowych - Polish Security Printing Works), and another organized the elections, I'm referring to Poczta Polska (Polish Post), and they incurred quite significant costs related to this, then of course they need to be questioned on this matter. However, Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki will certainly be there, because he was the one making the decisions. Deputy Prime Minister Sasin will certainly be there. Of course, it would also be good to invite Mr. Jarosław Kaczyński, who in 2021 said that he personally made the decisions in this matter - stated Dariusz Joński on RMF FM.

- All of this will emerge during these hearings, as witnesses are called. However, this list could be long because the matter is also very serious - he added.

- Roman Giertych also has vast experience in the context of parliamentary inquiry committees, so he will certainly be useful. And considering that the three committees currently being processed in the Sejm are not the end of parliamentary inquiry committees, because I remind you that a committee is also being considered regarding what happened at the National Centre for Research and Development, both during and in the times of the pandemic, and this may not be the end. Truly, everyone who has experience and has dealt with these matters is needed here, so I wouldn't be surprised if Roman Giertych appeared before a parliamentary inquiry committee. It would be obvious, as he has both experience and knowledge on this subject, so yes, it could happen. There is no decision yet, I'll say immediately, there isn't one yet. For now, we know the initial composition - stated Dariusz Joński on RMF FM.

- I believe there should be no place for people who condone this type of behavior. I was in the chamber when Braun returned after that whole incident, and I saw Deputy Speaker Bosak shake his hand. After all that, he didn't react. What's more, during the vote to actually punish him, even financially, for what he did, Mr. Bosak abstained, so this is, to some extent, an acceptance of all of it. I don't know what's happening in the entire Confederation; I'm not very interested because from what I hear, the whole Confederation is falling apart. But I wouldn't want someone who condones the behavior of anyone who acts like Braun to be on the presidium, - stated Dariusz Joński on RMF FM.

- We should expect them by the end of March, April at the latest - stated Katarzyna Pełczyńska-Nałęcz in a conversation with Marcin Fijołek on the Polsat News program "Gość Wydarzeń".

- There are two very important dimensions here. One dimension is the attitude towards the entire European Union and such a readiness for honest, partnership-based talks based on mutual respect. That political will was absent from the outgoing government, but it is present from this government. The second very important element is the rule of law, and again, there was no political will to fix things; on the contrary, the rule of law was demolished - stated Katarzyna Pełczyńska-Nałęcz in the program "Gość Wydarzeń" on Polsat News.

- From a formal perspective, there is of course a lack of responsibility on the part of the financial services of the Chancellery of the Prime Minister. But I think that even the best financial services could not have predicted this two-week government, which made no sense, but as it turns out, also caused financial losses - stated Marek Belka in the program "Fakty po faktach" on TVN24.

- We know, of course, in outline, what these largest extra-budgetary funds are. We know that BGK, that PFR conducted, how should I put it, their own, of course under the supervision of Prime Minister Morawiecki, conducted their own fiscal policy. The most dark matter for me is the fund, so to speak, for arms purchases. Well, we all remember that rather tragicomic incident, when we learned from the Korean press that we owe that country an additional 70 billion zlotys, just like that. So here I fear that there might be some terrible surprises - he continued.

- I don't think they'll be watching our hands that closely. Knowing that Donald Tusk and his government will constantly have to contend with problems we just discussed, such as the blatant sabotage from the Constitutional Tribunal, which, as it turns out now, claims jurisdiction over matters completely unrelated to its purview. So, it won't be easy, and both the Commissioners at the European Commission and the individual prime ministers of European governments are aware of this. However, everyone expects, and it will be required, that Poland takes decisive and rapid steps towards restoring the rule of law – Marek Belka stated on TVN24.

- Poland would receive these funds [from the Recovery Plan] one way or another, because Poland is simply entitled to this money, and the President said that regardless of who wins the elections, this money would be in Poland. If the United Right government, PiS, were to be formed today, this money would also be in Poland, the Recovery Plan would be in Poland – stated Marcin Mastalerek in an interview with Edyta Lewandowska on TVP Info's "Gość Wiadomości".

- This is because, firstly, it was a political matter, and this decision by the European Commission, and indeed all statements by European politicians, indicate that it was not about the law, but about politics. And I know for certain that these funds would be in Poland, even if PiS were in power? Because the European Commission will be elected this year. If they wanted to be elected, this money would be disbursed one way or another – the presidential minister continued.

- I am very glad that in the Presidential Palace, when Prime Minister Donald Tusk received his nomination and his government was sworn in, he said that he would uphold the law and the Constitution, and that this would be his hallmark. Because that means all that we are reading about public media, about TVP or Polish Radio, are solely and exclusively journalistic leaks. Because if Donald Tusk intends to fulfill his promise, what he said during the swearing-in of his government, then what we are reading and hearing about their intentions regarding public media must be untrue - stated Marcin Mastalerek on TVP Info's "Gość Wiadomości".

- According to them [journalists], Mateusz Morawiecki had no chance, and yet he fought. But he fought because Poland is worth fighting for. It speaks well of Prime Minister Morawiecki that he took up the fight, and the other side would prefer he didn't undertake this fight - stated Marcin Mastalerek on TVP Info's "Gość Wiadomości".

- The President took into consideration that the in vitro method raises ethical doubts for a portion of society. In light of demographic challenges, striving to ensure equal opportunities for everyone struggling with infertility, including those wishing to use other treatment methods, the President announces the submission of a draft law ensuring their financing from public funds – the Presidential Chancellery informed.

In early January 2024, a meeting of the Presidential Council for Health Protection is planned, dedicated to preparing the draft.