As the Polish general election approaches, the government will increase its nationalistic rhetoric and policies on issues ranging from migration to Ukrainian food imports, which will raise the risk of additional EU financial sanctions against Warsaw. On July 28, Poland's lower house of parliament, the Sejm, approved a law to create a commission to investigate politicians and government officials in the country who allegedly acted under Russia's influence between 2007 and 2022. Critics argue that the Polish government will use the commission to discredit and stigmatize opposition figures ahead of the next general election, which will take place in October or November. In June, pressure from the United States and the European Union led Polish President Andrzej Duda to propose amendments that reduce the powers of the new commission, which the Sejm confirmed in its July 28 vote. Regardless of the government's concrete uses of the law, this episode highlights...
