Poland's Tusk reshuffles cabinet, promotes Sikorski to deputy PM
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk speaks during a press conference announcing changes in his government as his cabinet members stand near him, in Warsaw, Poland, July 23, 2025. REUTERS/Kuba Stezycki
WARSAW - Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk promoted Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski to deputy prime minister on Wednesday as part of a government reshuffle aimed at stemming a decline in its approval ratings.
Sikorski will also keep his post as foreign minister while Finance Minister Andrzej Domanski will become Minister of Finance and Economy, overseeing all economic departments in the centrist, pro-European government, Tusk said.
Since nationalist Karol Nawrocki's victory over Tusk's liberal ally Rafal Trzaskowski in June's presidential election, tensions in the ruling Civic Coalition have risen and raised doubt about its future under a veto-wielding president.
Tusk's government has steadily declined in opinion polls since mid-2024. This month, the share of government opponents has risen to 48% while the government's support has held steady at 32%, the latest CBOS poll showed.
As part of the reshuffle, Milosz Motyka from junior coalition party PSL will head a newly-created energy ministry while the justice ministry, which is seeking to shore up rule of law standards that critics say deteriorated under the previous nationalist government, will be headed by judge Waldemar Zurek. REUTERS
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles

Straits Times
7 minutes ago
- Straits Times
Russia's night attack on Kyiv leaves eight injured, including child, Ukraine says
KYIV - A Russian overnight air attack on Kyiv wounded eight residents of an apartment building, including a three-year-old child, authorities in the Ukrainian capital said on Monday. Four of those injured in the attack, which took place soon after midnight on Monday, have been hospitalised, with one person in serious condition, the head of Kyiv's military administration, Tymur Tkachenko, said on the Telegram messaging app. Kyiv's Mayor Vitali Klitschko said that all of the people were residents of a multi-storey apartment building in the city's Darnytskyi district on the left bank of the Dnipro River. "The blast wave damaged windows from the 6th to the 11th floor," Klitschko said in a post on Telegram. The capital and most of Ukraine were under air raid alerts for several hours overnight following Ukrainian Air Force warnings of Russian missile and drone attacks. With the threat of missile strikes on western parts of Ukraine that border Poland - a NATO member - Polish armed forces scrambled aircraft to ensure the safety of Polish airspace. The central Ukrainian city of Kropyvnytskyi came under an attack, regional Governor Andriy Raikovych said, adding that emergency services were working on the site and information about potential damage will be released later on Monday. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore Tanjong Katong sinkhole backfilled; road to be repaved after LTA tests Singapore Tanjong Katong Road sinkhole did not happen overnight: Experts Singapore Authorities say access to Changi intertidal areas unaffected by reclamation, in response to petition Singapore SIA flights between S'pore and Cambodia, S'pore and Thailand, operating normally amid border dispute Singapore Police statements by doctor in fake vaccine case involving Iris Koh allowed in court: Judge Singapore New Mandai North Crematorium, ash-scattering garden to open on Aug 15 Singapore Not feasible for S'pore to avoid net‑zero; all options to cut energy emissions on table: Tan See Leng Singapore With regional interest in nuclear energy rising, S'pore must build capabilities too: Tan See Leng The full scale of the Russian attack on Ukraine was not immediately known. Reuters' witnesses heard loud blasts shaking the city of Kyiv overnight in what sounded like air defence units in operation. There was no comment from Russia on the attack. Both sides deny targeting civilians in their strikes in the war that Russia started in February 2022. But thousands of civilians have died in the conflict, the vast majority of them Ukrainian. REUTERS

Straits Times
7 minutes ago
- Straits Times
Abbot of China's iconic Shaolin temple under probe for corruption, sexual misconduct
Find out what's new on ST website and app. Venerable Shi Yongxin took office in 1999 as abbot of the famous temple, and had faced similar allegations in 2015. BEIJING - Chinese authorities are investigating the head of the temple where gongfu was born over alleged embezzlement and other misconduct, the monastery said. Abbot Shi Yongxin, known as the 'CEO monk' for establishing dozens of companies abroad, is suspected of embezzling project funds and temple assets, the Shaolin Temple said in a statement on WeChat on July 27 . It said Abbot Shi had seriously violated Buddhist precepts, including by allegedly engaging in 'improper relationships with multiple women. Multiple departments were conducting a joint investigation, the temple said. Abbot Shi has previously been accused by former monks of embezzling money from a temple-run company, maintaining a fleet of luxury cars and fathering children with multiple women. China's government exercises authority over the appointment of religious leaders, and improper conduct is often grounds for removal from office. A hashtag related to the temple scandal had been viewed over 560 million times on social media platform Weibo, as at the morning of July 28 . Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore Tanjong Katong sinkhole backfilled; road to be repaved after LTA tests Singapore Tanjong Katong Road sinkhole did not happen overnight: Experts Singapore Authorities say access to Changi intertidal areas unaffected by reclamation, in response to petition Singapore SIA flights between S'pore and Cambodia, S'pore and Thailand, operating normally amid border dispute Singapore Police statements by doctor in fake vaccine case involving Iris Koh allowed in court: Judge Singapore New Mandai North Crematorium, ash-scattering garden to open on Aug 15 Singapore Not feasible for S'pore to avoid net‑zero; all options to cut energy emissions on table: Tan See Leng Singapore With regional interest in nuclear energy rising, S'pore must build capabilities too: Tan See Leng The last post to the abbot's personal account on Weibo declared: 'when one's own nature is pure, the pure land is here in the present'. Abbot Shi faced similar allegations in 2015 which the temple called vicious libel. The 59-year-old took office as abbot in 1999 and in the following decades expanded Shaolin studies and cultural knowledge overseas. He helped the temple in China's Henan province to establish dozens of companies – but received backlash for commercialising Buddhism. The temple, established in AD495 , is known as the birthplace of Zen Buddhism and Chinese gongfu . Abbot Shi was first elected vice-chairman of the Buddhist Association of China in 2002 and has served as a representative to the National People's Congress, the country's top lawmaking body. AFP

Straits Times
an hour ago
- Straits Times
SIA flights between S'pore and Cambodia, S'pore and Thailand, operating normally amid border dispute
Find out what's new on ST website and app. A spokesperson for the SIA Group said its top priority is the safety of customers and its employees. SINGAPORE – All Singapore Airlines (SIA) flights between Singapore and Cambodia, as well as between Singapore and Thailand, continue to operate normally despite a deadly border dispute between Thailand and Cambodia. A spokesperson for the SIA Group said its top priority is the safety of customers and its employees. 'We will continue to monitor the situation closely and will adjust our flights where necessary,' the spokesperson added. A long-simmering border dispute between Thailand and Cambodia escalated to deadly violence on July 24 as their military forces clashed at multiple spots, leaving at least 12 people dead. The flare-up is part of a broader disagreement with origins stretching back more than a century and involves parts of a region known as the Emerald Triangle, where the boundaries of Thailand, Cambodia and Laos meet. The leaders of Thailand and Cambodia will attend mediation talks over their deadly border conflict in Malaysia on July 28 at 3pm local time at the Malaysian Prime Minister's Office in Kuala Lumpur. Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim invited representatives from both countries. Malaysia, which chairs the regional grouping Asean, has informed the Thai government that Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet would also be attending the talks, the statement said. According to The Nation, flights between Thailand and Cambodia are continuing as normal, as Cambodia's declared restricted area is limited and does not significantly impact air traffic departing from Thailand. Alternative flight paths are also readily available.