Poland has become one of the prominent actors affecting the future of Europe with 51 members in the European Parliament and representatives in the European Commission, the Council of Europe and other relevant institutions. It has been a member of the European Union since May 1, 2004, under the provisions of the Accession Treaty signed on April 16, 2003.

With a gross domestic product (GDP) of $600 billion and a population approaching 38 million, Poland has significant potential among today's EU member states. It is making a name for itself with the reforms it has carried out in fields such as education, health and technology.

The four values

In the EU integration process, it can be seen that Poland has adopted four important EU values and applied them to its current social, political, and economic order. The first of these is subsidiarity, which revolves around the participation of individuals and civil society organizations as a principle.

With the concept of solidarity, Poland, which considers the welfare of every citizen of the European continent as Poland’s own responsibility, envisaged making social participation a permanent part of decision-making mechanisms in line with the principle of social dialogue, based on consultation and negotiation methods.

Fourth and lastly, according to the Maastricht criteria, as a member state, within the scope of the public finance balance target, the method of deciding public expenditures in direct proportion to revenues has been adopted.

Economic dimension

In the post-accession period, Poland, which is on its way to becoming one of the leading economic stakeholders of the EU, was provided with a grant of approximately 80 billion euros ($89 billion) between 2007-2013 in the axis of cohesion, structural and common agricultural funds. These funds were realized at around 25 billion euros between the years 2014-2020, with the high success rate of the related processes. Between 2021 and 2027, approximately 38 billion euros from the EU's budget is expected to be allocated to Poland as repayable aid.

Poland's aims to develop its current transportation infrastructure, electricity generation and distribution system, engineering and green-building services are significantly supported in this context.

Poland, which has improved its position among Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries in the field of education with its groundbreaking reforms, also makes use of its youth capacity to the maximum and constitutes an important development example for countries within the EU. It can be seen without a doubt that over the last 25 years the Polish economy doubled in size in terms of real GDP.

New goals for future

After two decades of solid incremental growth, currently Poland is on the eve of setting new ambitious goals. The Polish government, trying to create comprehensive prosperity for its people, is a candidate for becoming one of the most important economic stakeholders of tomorrow's Europe with its qualified workforce, sustainable growth figures, developing energy and infrastructure systems.

Poland, which has the ability to prevent its population growth from declining and direct its diplomatic relations with the surrounding countries to a positive path, can largely overcome its obstacles to economic prosperity and thus contribute significantly to the diplomacy of the EU in the tense Belarus, Russia and Ukraine spiral.

Endeavoring to harmonize the pre-accession process at the point of decommunization, democratization, decentralization (with privatization) and demilitarization, Poland declared its departure from the Warsaw Pact in 1991 within the scope of demilitarization, the last of the action steps referred to as the "4d," after which the last Soviet army members left the country. Hence, it has become one of the most important partners of the region for the security of the EU.

When it comes to European security, the Weimar Triangle, which was established by Germany, France and Poland on Aug. 28, 1991, comes to mind. The three came together to take responsibility for the European integration process, Europe’s future and core interests.

The Polish administration has assisted the Permanent Structured Cooperation (PESCO) projects and strengthened the EU and Common Security and Defense Policy (CSDP) in many missions, showing its devotion to putting maximum effort into European security.

Poland perceives this policy as one of the primary pillars of the country's security and believes it offers indispensable support to initiatives carried out within NATO and a chance to develop cooperation with the EU's neighbors, including Eastern European countries.

Its efforts to resolve humanitarian and military crises with its forces in regions such as Bosnia-Herzegovina, the Central African Republic and Libya, Poland shows the country's unconditional commitment to the security of Europe.

The communication mechanisms that Poland establishes with EU neighbor countries, as well as its relations with the EU, are of great importance for the peace and stability of the region.

Lastly, it is obvious that Poland is an invaluable member of the EU, both militarily and economically. The country is on the verge of an unprecedented moment in its history and has the means to begin the new economic phase. While its strong military is capable of responding to the EU's security problems immediately, the country gives hope to the rest of the world with its stable financial indicators on the stage of economic development and its many diligent representatives working in EU institutions. The positive trend is likely to continue unless unpredictable events take it off its course, but at this speed, the unique atmosphere Poland has established with the EU sets a very valuable example for all countries in the diplomacy scene.