TVN24 News in English

TVN24 News in English

"It's chutzpah". Opposition critical of government-planned referendum on election day

The Polish government wants to pose questions to voters during the October 15 parliamentary election that will include whether Poland should take in "thousands of illegal immigrants", a move rivals say aims to swing the vote by misleading voters about opposition policies. According to the National Electoral Commission, participation in the referendum is entirely up to each voter, just like when it comes to taking part in the election.

MOD chief signs contracts on new vehicles for Polish Armed Forces

The Minister of National Defence Mariusz Błaszczak on Monday (August 14) signed three agreements with Polish Armament Group (Polska Grupa Zbrojeniowa - PGZ) on the delivery of new equipment for the Polish Armed Forces. "They pertain to heavy infantry fighting vehicles, a new version of wheeled armoured personnel carriers, and light reconnaissance vehicles," the MOD chief said.

President Duda for "Washington Post": Putin has to be stopped now so U.S. soldiers don't have to shed blood

In an interview for "The Washington Post", Poland's President Andrzej Duda said his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin is dreaming of restoring the Russian Empire. He stressed that Russia must be stopped now in Ukraine "so that it does not come to pass, as it did in World War I and World War II, that American soldiers have to shed their blood and to lose their lives in Europe to restore peace and liberty to the world". Duda also said he would push the White House to make sure Ukraine gets invited to NATO during next year's summit in Washington.

Polish military searches for a lost missile fuse

A Polish Army helicopter crew have reported that the fuse in one of the missiles is missing - the General Command of Polish Armed Forces informed on Thursday (August 10). The military authorities reassured the fuse has in-built safety features and does not pose danger to anyone. "This doesn't happen too often, because it's not that simple. It's not that such fuses are attached, they are screwed in," Polish Navy Reserve Commander Maksymilian Dura told TVN24. He added that "saying that it isn't dangerous is quite strange, because the role of this fuse, the role of this triggering element is precisely to be dangerous".

MOD: Poland to move further 10,000 soldiers to Belarus border

Poland is planning to move up to 10,000 additional troops to the border with Belarus to support the Border Guard, Defense Minister Mariusz Błaszczak said on Thursday (August 10). The minister also told public radio that Poland would accept Germany's offer to keep by the end of the year the three German Patriot units stationed at its eastern border .

MOD chief: Poland is ready to help Slovenia to tackle floods

We are ready to provide support to Slovenia. Polish military engineers can build a pontoon bridge in a location pointed by the Slovenian authorities. A reconnaissance group is already under way - Poland's MOD chief Mariusz Błaszczak said on Wednesday (August 9). The EU will make at least 400 million euros available to Slovenia after devastating floods there killed at least six people and affected tens of thousands of households, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Wednesday.

Polish astronaut to take part in mission to the ISS

A Polish astronaut will take part in a mission to the International Space Station (ISS) - Poland's Minister of Economic Development and Technology Waldemar Buda announced on Wednesday (August 9). Later on, Buda said on the X social media platform that Poland will put forward Sławosz Uznański as candidate for the mission. The first-ever, and so far the only one, Polish astronaut in space was Mirosław Hermaszewski.

Interior ministry: 2,000 troops will help secure Belarus border

Poland will send 2,000 troops to its frontier with Belarus, the deputy interior minister told state-run news agency PAP on Wednesday (August 9), twice the number requested by the Border Guard, to stem illegal crossings and maintain stability. Germany has offered to extend the deployment of three Patriot air defence units in Poland until the end of 2023, the defence ministry in Berlin said on Tuesday. Polish MOD confirmed on Wednesday it has received the German offer.

Waiting for parliamentary election. PKW issues opinion on proposed date

President Andrzej Duda has asked the PKW (the National Electoral Commission) to issue its opinion regarding October 15 as the proposed date of parliamentary election - the TVN24 reporter Agata Adamek has unofficially learned. The PKW chairman Sylwester Marciniak told the Polish Press Agency the PKW has sent its opinion regarding the election date to the Chancellery of the President. However, he did not reveal the proposed date.

Physician demands apology from health minister over personal rights violation

Doctor Piotr Pisula, whose personal information was published on social media by Poland's Health Minister Adam Niedzielski, informed he has filed a pre-trial call addressed to the minister urging him to issue an apology and donate 100,000 zlotys to Palium Hospice in Poznań. Minister Niedzielski rejected the accusation and reassured that no laws had been broken by him.

President Duda signs "800+" child benefit program bill into law

Polish families will receive a 60% increase in child benefit payments from next January, under a policy the ruling nationalists hope will help win them a third term in office in a national election due this autumn. "The greatest support for development in the future is the family," President Andrzej Duda said after he signed the bill increasing the benefit into law.