Andrzej Duda’s chief of staff defended waiting for the U.S., calling it “our greatest ally.”
President Andrzej Duda’s office is pushing back against criticism that his meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump was too short after a long wait. Critics argue the meeting was much shorter than expected.
Polish media outlets reported that Duda anticipated at least an hour with Trump after traveling to the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in Maryland on Saturday. Reports indicate the meeting lasted only ten minutes after Trump’s late arrival, according to Bloomberg and Reuters.
On Monday, Marcin Mastalerek, Duda’s chief of staff, dismissed the criticism as baseless, attributing it to “so-called Twitter experts.”
He told Radio ZET that the meeting was not just 10 minutes, nor was an hour expected. He blamed “political jealousy” for the negative comments, suggesting that some resent the strong relationship between Duda and Trump. He also dismissed the idea that waiting for “the president of the greatest power, our greatest ally” was humiliating.
Duda was the first European leader to meet Trump in person after Trump’s second-term inauguration last month. During his visit, Duda voiced confidence that the U.S. would maintain its presence in Poland. He also encouraged Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky to seek “calm and constructive cooperation” with Trump.
Poland has strongly supported Ukraine in its conflict with Russia. This policy continues under the pro-EU, liberal government of Prime Minister Donald Tusk, who won the 2023 election against Duda’s allies from the conservative Law and Justice (PiS) party.
Trump’s stance on Ukraine differs greatly from that of his predecessor, Joe Biden. Trump wants a quick end to the conflict and has criticized Zelensky’s policies, including his refusal to hold elections. Washington is also looking to recoup taxpayer money spent on aiding Ukraine by negotiating a minerals deal, which the Zelensky government hasn’t yet finalized.
Amid rising tensions, Trump has called Zelensky a “dictator without elections,” and warned that Zelensky’s chance to benefit from U.S. support is dwindling. Zelensky has responded by accusing Trump of being trapped in a Russian “disinformation bubble.”