Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk has accused Romanian presidential candidate George Simion of “pro-Russian” interference in his country’s affairs after the right-winger spoke at a Silesian rally to support opposition Conservative (PiS) candidate Karol Nawrocki ahead of Poland’s vote for its own new president on May 18.
The Romanian candidate attended a rally for Nawrocki on May 13 in Zabrze, where a local recall referendum earlier this month resulted in voters removing the Tusk-allied mayor from office.
Simion told the Zabrze audience that “the unelected European authorities tried to steal the elections in Romania, but the Romanian people stood against it — stood for freedom, just as you Poles once stood against communism.”
“Now is the time — we must fight for freedom once again. Freedom for our rights, for our Christian families, and for our nations. We fight for freedom together, and together we want to decide our own fate. We do not want others to decide for us,” he said.
In response, a furious Tusk took to X to write: “Russia is rejoicing.”
“Nawrocki and his pro-Russian Romanian counterpart, George Simion, shared a stage five days before the presidential elections in Poland and Romania. It’s all clear now,” he added.
The Romanian politician replied by posting a 2010 photograph of the Polish leader making a friendly gesture towards Russian president Vladimir Putin in the aftermath of the Smolensk air disaster that led to the death of PiS-supporting Polish president Lech Kaczyński and 95 other officials and staff.
In this photo is Putin's man in Poland.
The whole of Europe knows it.
Nobody believes your lies and hypocrisy anymore, Donald! pic.twitter.com/KCT91bLt3F— 🇷🇴 George Simion 🇲🇩 (@georgesimion) May 13, 2025
Speaking on Polish government controlled broadcaster Radio Trójka, PiS MP Radosław Fogiel criticised Tusk for his attack on Simion, saying that it was against Poland’s interests to argue with allies.
“Tusk has in the past made out that Trump is a Russian spy and that ended with the Polish PM being debarred from entry to the White House. Now he wants to get into conflict with a potential president and ally in Romania”, he said.
Simion, who is facing a run-off in the Romanian presidential election against the centrist Bucharest mayor Nicușor Dan, is the candidate of the Romanian right-wing party AUR, a member of the European Conservative Reformists in the European Parliament, of which PiS and Italian prime minister Giorgia Meloni’s Brothers of Italy party are also members.
Simion, has publicly expressed his view that Russia is the aggressor in the war in Ukraine, but has opposed any further Romanian assistance to Kyiv and supported US President Donald Trump’s peace overtures.
While facing a tightening race with rival Dan, Simon told the rally that he had paused his own campaign in Romania because “even if I win on Sunday, that won’t be enough. We need friends, we need brothers. You are our brothers”.
The Romanian also suggested the US President was on side with the Nawrocki’s candidacy.
“Donald Trump is not just a person, he is a symbol of freedom and the fight for liberty,” he said.
“This Sunday, elections are taking place in both Poland and Romania. The most powerful man in the world, Donald Trump, supports Karol Nawrocki,” Simion added, alluding to Trump’s meeting with Nawrocki on May 1.
