The upper house of Polish parliament, the Senate, on Wednesday passed two bills necessary for the country to ratify Sweden and Finland's accession to the North-Atlantic Alliance. The draft legislation had been previously approved by the lower house - the Sejm. Now, the bills will land on president Duda's desk who will sign them into law.

Barcelona have signed world-class striker Robert Lewandowski from Bayern Munich for up to 50 million euros ($51.14 million), the two clubs announced late on Tuesday. The final agreement comes three days after the Catalan club announced an agreement in principle for the Polish striker, which came while the team was flying to the United States.

Poland's Supreme Audit Office (NIK) has notified a prosecutor yet again, saying the health ministry might have violated the law when purchasing ventilators. Health Ministry spokesperson Wojciech Andrusiewicz said on Tuesday that the ministry had not received official information regarding the case.

Annual inflation in Poland in June this year was 14.2%, according to the latest report by Eurostat. To compare, consumer prices in May had increased by 12.8% yoy. Annual inflation in the eurozone jumped by 8.6%, whereas in the European Union as a whole - by 9.6%.

The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine on Tuesday (July 19) approved in the first reading a presidential bill on special status of Polish citizens in Ukraine. According to internet news service Ukrainska Pravda, which quoted Ukrainian MP Jaroslav Zeleznak, the new legislation was backed by 321 deputies.

Poland plans to offer households a one-off payment of 3,000 zlotys ($635) to help cover the rising cost of coal, according to a draft bill published late on Monday, as the country faces surging energy prices as a result of the war in Ukraine. The proposal was accepted by the government on Tuesday afternoon and will now face a vote in parliament.

Treasure hunters unearthed four Roman coins and some other items in a field located in Dołhobyczów municipality (Lublin Voivodeship). The oldest coin found, and at the same the best-preserved one, comes from the era of Emperor Vespasian's reign, that is years 69-79 AD. The coins have been placed in a museum in Hrubieszów, which is planning to search site once the harvest has been done.

The first tranche of money from the European Union will flow to Poland at the turn of the year - Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said on Monday in the southern town of Gliwice. He added it was of a secondary importance to him whether the funds would come from Common Agricultural Policy, EU structural funds, or national recovery plan.

An activist from Agrounia movement asked Poland's central bank chief Adam Glapiński, who was taking a walk on Saturday with his wife at the Sopot Pier, how young people like herself were supposed to make a living in Poland in times of galloping inflation. The NBP chief advised the woman to take the so-called credit vacation. Glapiński's wife was also involved in the conversation.

Polish Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Mariusz Błaszczak said on Monday that Abrams tanks that will be used to train Polish soldiers had already arrived. "We will be ready when the first of 250 state-of-art tanks we purchased arrive," the minister said. Poland bought 250 Abrams tanks to fill the void created after handing over 240 T-72 tanks to Ukraine.

The recently amended law on the Supreme Court entered into force on Friday (July 15). As a result, the constested Disciplinary Chamber for judges ceased to exist and has been replaced by a newly created Chamber of Professional Responsibility. The amended law is meant end the long-running dispute between Warsaw and Brussels regarding the rule of law, and consequently to unlock money earmarked for Poland as part of the EU recovery plan. Whether the change is sufficient to achieve this goal remains to be seen, as the EU executive was still examining Poland's new law on courts. However, Vice-President of the European Commission Vera Jourova had already mentioned on June 30 that said legislation had not met the set out milestones.

Poland's inflation in June was at 15.5% year on year, which was the highest level in 25 years - Statistics Poland said on Friday. The last time consumer prices increase was higher happened in March of 1997, when inflation had reached 16.6%. Inflation in June turned out to be just slightly lower than as it had been predicted in a flash estimate earlier this month - 15.6% yoy.

Inflation in Poland in 2022 is to be at 12.2% and at 9% in 2023 - according to the latest European Commission forecast. In both cases this is more than in the May prediction. Moreover, inflation in Poland in 2023 will be the highest the EU. In its summer report, the EU executive also updated forecasts on GDP growth in EU member states.

The European Union told Hungary and Poland on Wednesday to improve judicial and media independence, as well as anti-graft safeguards, saying conditions to unlock billions in aid for the two have not been met and serious concerns persist.

During his official visit to Warsaw on Tuesday (July 12), United States Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry met with Poland's President Andrzej Duda and Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki. At a press conference held in the afternoon, Kerry spoke about Polish-American cooperation in the scope of new technologies, carbon-free economy and using nuclear energy in Poland. "We’re also here to share in this journey to a carbon-free economy on a global basis," he said, adding that the USA were hoping to be helpful with "nuclear power here in Poland". We're committed and supportive of that effort. President Biden asked me to come here and meet with the president to talk about it," Kerry said.

"We have agreed with Israel's President Isaac Herzog it is time to return to normal relations (between) Poland and Israel," President Andrzej Duda said on Twitter. He added that "the first step" in that regard had been taken. "Ambassador @YacovLivne submitted letter of credence today," Duda said. "I arrived here in order to restore the relationship between Poland and Israel back on the normal track. This is our goal," ambassador Livne told TVN24 later on Tuesday.

The National Bank of Poland forecasts that increase in electricity and gas tariffs for households is to reach double figures. The bank, however, does not want to speak about exact figures as this is a purely technical projection - says NBP Economic Analysis and Research Department Director Piotr Szpunar. Poland's Energy Regulatory Office has already launched proceedings related to changes in electricity sales tariffs.

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskiy submitted a draft law in the parliament regarding granting Polish citizens a special status in Ukraine, Ukrainian president's office informed on Monday (July 11). President Zelenskiy also granted Polish city of Przemyśl the honarary title of the "Rescuer City".

Last week, a home for youth who had found themselves in homelessness crisis was opened in Warsaw. The house, which was rearranged to serve this particular purpose, already hosts seven residents. "Usually when we talk about homelessness, we think about an older man with a beard who doesn't smell too nicely, but we don't see a face of an 18-year-old - and I have met such persons. I thought to myself it should not be this way: these young people have the right to step into adulthood in convenient, decent starting conditions - and we saw about that," chief of "Po drugie" foundation Agnieszka Sikora told TVN24.

On Monday (July 11), Poland marked the National Day of Remembrance of the Victims of the Genocide of Citizens of the Polish Republic committed by Ukrainian Nationalists. During a commemorative ceremony in Warsaw, President Andrzej Duda spoke about the memory of the Volhynia Massacre victims, saying that the crime was "in fact genocide". He added that Poland "wants the truth" and "wants graves" of the victims.

Poland's Health Minister Adam Niedzielski said at a press conference on Friday that Poland was recording one of the highest coronavirus R values (reproduction number and growth rate of coronavirus) since the start of the pandemic, adding that approx. 450 COVID patients were being hospitalised at the time. He also said the government would not be considering to introduce any restrictions if the level of hospitalisations stayed below 5,000 cases.

Belsat TV informs, based on viewers reports, that a burial ground of Polish, soldiers located in Kachichi village, Grodno Region, has been vandalised. This is yet another such case in recent days. A few days ago, another cemetery of Polish soldiers was demolished in the same region in Mikulishki. "Poland strongly condemns acts of vandalism targeting resting places," the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on Twitter on Friday.

Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said on Friday he was shocked by the death former Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe. Japan's longest-serving leader died on Friday after being shot while campaigning for a parliamentary election.

Poland's Monetary Policy Council raised interest rates for the 10th time in a row in order to tackle the galloping inflation. The main reference rate has been increased up to 6.50% on annual basis and now it is at the highest level since 2004.

Belarusian opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya called the demolition of a Polish soldiers cemetery in Belarus "an outrage". "I would like to express our friendship with Poland & support for Poles in Belarus," Tsikhanouskaya added in a tweet. Polish Ambassador in Minsk Artur Michalski thanked Tsikhanouskaya for her "important words" and "solidarity".

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirms that a Polish national was taken into custody in Iran in September 2021, Polish MFA spokesperson Łukasz Jasina said in a statement on Thursday. Iran's Revolutionary Guards have detained several foreigners, including Britain's second most senior envoy in Tehran, for alleged acts of spying such as taking soil samples in restricted areas, state television reported on Wednesday.

A company of British Challenger tanks will arrive in Poland this week, Poland's Defence Minister Mariusz Błaszczak said on Twitter on Wednesday. He added that the company will reinforce British forces already stationed in Poland.

According to a recovery plan for Ukraine, laid out by Ukraine's Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal on Monday in Lugano, Poland would responsible for rebuilding of Donetsk Oblast "I think the key idea of this map was having all the countries involved, making sure that every single ally has direct place to work," Ukrainian MP Kira Rudyk told TVN24 BiS.

Asked on Wednesday how many times the chief of his office Michał Dworczyk had met with Constitutional Tribunal chief judge Julia Przyłębska to discuss ongoing cases in said Tribunal, Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki would not give a definitive answer. He called the so-called email scandal and messages allegedly leaked from Dworczyk's account a "Russian provocation", adding that various media outlets were "falling into Vladimir Putin's trap".

Phan Thi Kim Phuc, better known as the "Napalm Girl" from Nick Ut's award-winning photograph from 1972, visited Warsaw on Monday. She assisted a group of more than 200 refugees from Ukraine who boarded a plane to Canada. A photograph of her running away from an air strike in 1972 is one of the most important symbols of the tragic Vietnam War.