Donald Tusk
Donald Franciszek Tusk is a Polish politician and historian who has served as the prime minister of Poland since 2023, having previously held the post from 2007 to 2014. From 2014 to 2019 Tusk was President of the European Council, and from 2019 to 2022 he was the president of the European People's Party (EPP). He co-founded the Civic Platform (PO) party in 2001 and has twice been its leader, first from 2003 to 2014 and again since 2021.
Some of the key events about Donald Tusk
- 1980Co-founded the Independent Students' Union, one of the first student organizations opposing communist rule in Poland
- 1991Co-founded the Liberal Democratic Congress party, promoting free-market reforms and European integration
- 2001Co-founded the Civic Platform party, which became one of Poland's major political forces
- 2005Faced criticism for his party's alliance with the populist Self-Defense party
- 2007Became Prime Minister of Poland, leading the country through the global financial crisis without entering recession
- 2007Accused of mishandling the investigation into the 2010 Smolensk plane crash
- 2010Criticized for his government's response to severe flooding in Poland
- 2011Won re-election as Prime Minister, becoming the first Polish PM to serve two consecutive terms since 1989
- 2012Faced protests over plans to raise the retirement age in Poland
- 2014Elected as President of the European Council, becoming the first Eastern European to hold this position
- 2014Embroiled in a wiretapping scandal involving senior government officials
- 2015Played a key role in negotiating the EU-Turkey agreement to address the European migrant crisis
- 2015His party lost the parliamentary elections after eight years in power
- 2016Criticized for his handling of the migrant crisis as President of the European Council
- 2017Secured a second term as President of the European Council, continuing to lead EU policy discussions
- 2017Accused of interfering in Polish domestic politics while serving as European Council President
- 2019Elected as President of the European People's Party, the largest political group in the European Parliament
- 2019Faced allegations of favoring Germany's interests over those of other EU members
- 2021Criticized for his leadership of the European People's Party and its declining influence
- 2023Returned to Polish politics and was elected as leader of the Civic Platform party, aiming to form a new government
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