"Poland's experience in accession negotiations and preparation for EU membership"

USAID RADA: next generation Program, in cooperation with the EU-funded project Association4U, organized an online meeting on Poland’s European integration experience. 109 representatives of the Verkhovna Rada and the Ukrainian government attended the event.

Cesar Herma, the key expert of the EU-funded project Association4U on EU legal approximation and EU law translation, shared the experience of Poland’s European integration. He worked as an expert, deputy head, and head of the EU Law Department of the “European Secretariat” of the Polish Government for 17 years.

Mr. Herma said that Poland had a favorable political background for implementing rapid European integration, including the country leadership’s political will and the absence of political forces that would slow down the process.

In particular, among the Poland’s positive experiences the expert emphasized:

• strong institutional coordination with the Prime Minister’s involvement;
• governmental leadership in the issue of European integration in close partnership with the parliament;
• political control and regular reports at all levels;
• priority of European integration laws and flexibility in their normative design.

Mr. Herma also shared caveats with the participants based on Poland’s experience of European integration. In particular, delays in adopting European integration laws lead to a hasty approximation of EU law legislation in the future, negatively affecting the quality of laws and their further implementation.

Poland became the 5th country whose European integration experience was discussed within a series of meetings of USAID RADA: Next Generation Program. Earlier, representatives of Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, and the Czech Republic shared their European integration experience.