President appoints Szymon Szynkowski vel Sęk as new minister for EU affairs

President Andrzej Duda on Wednesday (October 12) accepted Konrad Szymański's resignation as minister for European affairs. Later that day, Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki announced Szymański would be replaced by Deputy Foreign Minister Szymon Szynkowski vel Sęk.

On Thursday (October 13) evening, the president appointed Szynkowski vel Sęk as new minister for EU affairs. "A very important government portfolio is being taken over, one connected with great responsibility," Andrzej Duda said.

"The minister has been handling foreign affairs of the Republic of Poland for years now, with huge experience in conducting very important missions in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs," he added.

President Duda also said Poland's relations with Germany will be part of Szynkowski vel Sęk's duties. "No need to beat about the bush, we are perfectly aware that - within the European Union - the Federal Republic of Germany, our biggest EU partner, is a country which plays a special role," he explained.

"Therefore, I believe this is an excellent choice, because I'm safe to say that the minister has an excellent understanding of the specifics of cooperation with our western neighbour, the ins and outs in that regard, as well as the subject of Brussels-related affairs," Duda said about the new minister.

"I have absolutely no doubt that you will handle this difficult task brilliantly. I have no doubts because I'm perfectly aware of your determination in handling Polish affairs," the president added.

TVN24 reporter Agata Adamek asked the chief of PiS party parliamentary club Ryszard Terlecki to comment on the new appointee. "Minister Szymański was a very good minister and I think he proved himself well in this role. But in politics, changes are sometimes necessary. Minister Szymon Synkowski is a very good minister, expert on German affairs. I think he will be even better," he said, referring to Szynkowski vel Sęk.

Asked if an expert on German affairs was what the government needed at the moment, Terlecki replied: "I guess so".

Szymon Szynkowski vel Sęk was born in Poznan on 24 November 1982. He graduated from the Faculty of Law and Administration of the Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań, where he majored in international relations. In 2003-2004, he was a Socrates Erasmus scholarship holder at Osnabrück University.

From 2004 to 2015, he collaborated with Members of the European Parliament. A Sejm deputy since 2015, he sat on the Sejm’s European Union and Foreign Affairs Committees, and chaired the Polish-German Parliamentary Group.

The founder and president (2012-2016) of Project Poznań, a local think-tank. In 2006-2015, he served as city councillor in Poznań. In 2015-2016, he was Poznan’s delegate to the Board of the Association of Polish Cities. He is the author of many press articles on European law and local government policy.