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The paper examines the release of €137 billion in EU funds to Poland following Donald Tusk's return to power in December 2023, raising questions about the European Union's motivations and consistency regarding the rule of law. It critiques the alleged double standards applied to Poland, exploring whether the EU's criteria for withholding funds were genuinely rooted in concerns over judicial independence or driven by political considerations.

In office since 13 December 2023, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk had made improving relations between Warsaw and Brussels a key campaign promise. At stake was the release of funds owed to Poland, which had been withheld due to alleged violations of the principle of judicial independence by the former Conservative majority. On 23 February 2024, this was accomplished: the European Commission proposed the release of up to €137 billion in cohesion funds and Polish Recovery Plan funds.

The conservative opposition views this as evidence of the double standards to which Poland has been subjected to for years. At the same time, they accuse Donald Tusk of committing serious violations of the rule of law since his return to power, without eliciting any negative reaction from the European Union (EU). Insofar as the saga of the payment of European funds to Poland must be read in the light of the change of government in December 2023, it allows us to question the real nature and motivations behind the blocking of funds.

Were the criteria related to the independence of the judiciary and the rule of law genuinely the basis for the blockade? In the Polish case, where do these criteria originate, and what is their actual legal significance?