EU chief in Poland to confirm long-delayed recovery plan

WARSAW, Poland (AP) — The European Commission chief is visiting Warsaw to officially confirm the EU executive’s long-delayed approval of Poland’s pandemic recovery plan, which would enable conditional release of billions of euros in grants and loans to the country. Commission President Ursula von der Leyen met Poland’s Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki for talks about the commission’s decision taken Wednesday. They were to meet with President Andrzej Duda later Thursday and jointly announce the agreement, as Poland is taking steps to remove some of the sticking points that held up the plan’s approval for months. The agreement includes “milestones” in ensuring judiciary independence that Poland needs to reach before any of the 36 billion euros ($38.5 billion) can be made available.