German Chancellor Angela Merkel on a visit in Poland with President Andrzej Duda. Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Tuesday that Germany could "not stay silent" on EU fears about the rule of law in neighbouring Poland, calling it a "serious issue". "As much as I want good relations with Poland, our neighbour... we cannot stay silent and say nothing just to keep the peace," she said. Speaking at a press conference in Berlin, she stressed that the rule of law was "the basis for cooperation within the EU". Poland's foreign ministry insisted on Monday that the Law and Justice party (PiS) government's "legislative action, the overriding aim of which is to reform the justice system, is in line with European standards".

Source: The Local August 29, 2017 10:18 UTC