T The European Union’s highest court on Tuesday ordered Poland to recognise same-sex marriages registered in other EU countries even if Polish law does not permit them. EU countries have the obligation to recognise a marriage between two EU citizens of the same sex lawfully concluded in another EU state, the Court of Justice of the European Union ruled.
The ruling addressed the case of a Polish couple who married in Berlin in 2018 and later wanted to move back to Poland. Polish authorities refused to transcribe and recognise the couple’s German marriage certificate. LGBTQ+ individuals for decades have been fighting for equal rights in Poland, where same-sex marriage and civil partnerships are illegal.
The EU court said the ruling does not mean Poland is obliged to legalise same-sex marriage. But it said the failure to recognise the marriage certificate was in breach of the “freedom to move and reside” as well as the “fundamental right to respect for private and family life.”
Hubert Sobecki with the Milosc Nie Wyklucza LGBTQ+ advocacy group said the Polish government will have to implement the ruling because it comes from the EU’s highest court, meaning the EU executive can impose fines or otherwise exercise political pressure on Warsaw if it does not.
The Polish government, led by Prime Minister Donald Tusk, faces resistance from conservative members of the governing alliance and the president over legalising civil partnerships. In October, the government presented a proposal that would give same-sex couples the possibility to sign an agreement at the notary, giving them certain rights, such as access to medical records or joint tax statements.
It is unclear if conservative new President Karol Nawrocki will accept the proposal. New measures, describing them as a “timely and necessary” step amid intensified Russian attacks. “All infrastructure of Russia’s war must be blocked,” Zelenskyy said, adding that Ukraine will synchronize its sanctions with the EU and introduce its own additional measures soon.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov brushed off the EU move, saying that “we consider such unilateral restrictions unlawful”. “At the same time, we have acquired certain immunity from sanctions. We have adapted to living under sanctions,” Peskov said in a conference call with reporters.
“We will need to analyse the new package in order to minimise negative consequences from it.” The UK has Russia’s spies in its sights The UK, meanwhile, imposed sanctions on units of Russia’s military intelligence service, GRU. Also added to the list were 18 officers the UK said helped to plan a bomb attack on a theatre in southern Ukraine in 2022 and to target the family of a former Russian spy who was later poisoned with a nerve agent.
Hundreds of civilians sheltering in the theatre in Mariupol were killed in March 2022, shortly after Russia invaded Ukraine. “GRU spies are running a campaign to destabilise Europe, undermine Ukraine’s sovereignty and threaten the safety of British citizens,” UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy said. NATO also condemned Russia’s cyberattacks, saying in a statement that “we will respond to these at a time and in a manner of our choosing, in accordance with international law, and in coordination with our international partners including the EU”.
Targeting Russian energy interests The European Commission, the EU’s executive branch, had proposed to lower the oil price cap from $60 to $45, which is lower than the market price, to target Russia’s vast energy revenues. The 27 member countries decided to set the price per barrel at just under $48.
The EU had hoped to get major international powers in the Group of Seven countries involved in the price cap to broaden the impact, but the Trump administration could not be brought onboard. Oil income is the linchpin of Russia’s economy, allowing President Vladimir Putin to pour money into the armed forces without worsening inflation for everyday people and avoiding a currency collapse.
A new import ban was also imposed in an attempt to close a loophole allowing Russia to indirectly export crude oil via a number of non-EU countries. The EU also targeted the Nord Stream pipelines between Russia and Germany to prevent Putin from generating any revenue from them in future, notably by discouraging would-be investors. Russian energy giant Rosneft’s refinery in India was hit as well.