Polish President Offers to Soften Russian Probe Law After Outcry

Poland’s President Andrzej Duda will propose changes to a controversial law that would potentially put the country’s opposition leader under investigation ahead of a crucial election, following a barrage of criticism from the US and the European Union.

(Bloomberg) — Poland’s President Andrzej Duda will propose changes to a controversial law that would potentially put the country’s opposition leader under investigation ahead of a crucial election, following a barrage of criticism from the US and the European Union.

The president will propose amendments to the legislation on Friday that would include softening the ability of the panel, set up to probe Russian meddling, to impose penalties, he told reporters in Warsaw. Duda will also seek to exclude lawmakers from taking part in nine-person committee and tweak the appeals process. 

The move is an attempt to defuse the brewing conflict sparked by the legislation that Duda signed into law on Monday. Since then, the US and the EU said the panel could be misused to sway a tightly contested vote expected in October.

 

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