Today, Poland is the 20th largest economy in the world and we have the potential to be a member of the G20, said on Friday in Washington the Minister of Finance and Economy, Andrzej Domański, who is taking part in the annual meeting of the IMF and the World Bank.
Discussions within these formats focus on the prospects for economic growth and ongoing trade tensions, Domański said during a briefing for Polish media.
– Here, the example of Poland and the dynamics of economic growth that we are achieving as a country are certainly universally respected – he noted.
The minister said that Poland is presented as a country that has achieved enormous economic success over the last 35 years. – However, of course, our role, my role, is also to ensure that this economic growth is maintained in the coming years. That is why we continue to focus on building the competitiveness of the Polish economy, he continued.
Domański said that in Washington, despite the ongoing shutdown, he met with US Energy Minister Chris Wright, with whom he talked about building “an entire ecosystem around nuclear energy” in Poland.
The first nuclear power plant is being built in Poland in cooperation with American partners. There are also ongoing talks about SMRs, i.e. small modular reactors. – For me, it is extremely important that Polish companies take part in this ongoing energy transformation – said Domański.
The talks also concerned the import of American gas. – Poland is already a large importer, but we see room to import even more American gas – said the minister.
According to him, “Poland has the potential to be a kind of gas hub in Central and Eastern Europe.”
– The huge investment plan implemented by the Polish government obviously requires financing. That is why I met with John Jovanovic, the head of Exim Bank recently appointed by President (US Donald – PAP) Trump, with whom we talked about financing tools for these large infrastructure investments in our country – he continued.
The minister also met with American business, representatives of the financial sector and the arms sector, including the president of Lockheed Martin.
– We show the investment prospects in our country. And the fact that American companies have so far played a huge role in building our economic success, but I believe that the investment potential in our country is still huge – added Domański.
– Everyone is very impressed by the fact that this year the Polish economy will be larger than the Japanese economy in terms of GDP per capita after taking into account price levels. So this is something that I think 35 years ago we could only dream about, and today that dream is becoming a reality, he said.
– Our role, our responsibility, is to do everything to make the next 35 years equally successful – Domański said at the briefing.
Referring to American tariffs, he noted that “the Polish economy, fortunately, has little exposure to American tariffs, although in fact there are sectors that will be affected by these tariffs.”
– Our position here does not change. Customs duties and higher tariffs harm the economy, companies and consumers. Therefore, we must pursue an open economic policy, but also in Europe we must focus on building the competitiveness of the European economy, he continued.
When asked by PAP about Poland's efforts to join the G20, he replied that “at virtually every meeting we confirmed that Poland is today the 20th largest economy in the world and our aspirations here are clear.”
– We believe that Poland has the potential to be a member of the G20 group. We are pleased with President Trump's invitation to the leaders' summit in Miami. We are also working with our partners from the US administration on participation in other formats, he continued.
Domański noted that during the meetings in Washington, Chinese restrictions on the export of rare earth metals and European regulations were also discussed.
– During my meetings, I often hear some kind of complaining from the European Union's trading partners about the overregulation of the European market, about new directives and regulations related to, for example, reporting by companies investing in Europe. I am very sensitive to these voices, because they are investors, these are companies that can potentially invest in Europe, he explained.
– We just need to make some effort to simplify European regulations – urged the minister.
From Washington Natalia Dziurdzińska (PAP)
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