Polish President Andrzej Duda met with his Weimer Triangle counterparts yesterday in Berlin, where the leaders of Germany, France, and Poland collectively stressed the need to avoid war in Europe.

The talks between Duda, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, and French President Emmanuel Macron focused on security in Central and Eastern Europe and the threat of a Russian invasion of Ukraine.

At a joint media briefing afterward, Chancellor Scholz declared the “assessment of the situation” to be “identical … any further violation of Ukraine’s territorial integrity and sovereignty is unacceptable and would have far-reaching consequences for Russia, in political, economic, and probably also geostrategic terms.”

In a similar vein, President Duda stressed the need for “unity and solidarity,” advocating for “a wise, but firm and decisive stance” and “a solution that will allow us to avoid war.” Duda went on to declare his confidence “that together, we [will be] able to develop just such a stance and the tools necessary to maintain it.”

Source: Radio Gdańsk, Radio Poland

On Tuesday, the Polish central bank’s Monetary Policy Council raised key interest rates for the fifth consecutive time in a bid to tame surging consumer prices.

The reference rate went up by 50 basis points, from 2.25 to 2.75 percent, amid rising inflation, which hit 8.6 percent in December, according to reports published mid-January by the Central Statistical Office (GUS).

Central bank chief Adam Glapiński said last month that Poland’s interest rates were likely to rise further in the near future as inflation remained high and looked set to stay elevated throughout 2022.

Last October, Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki called for “an appropriate response” from the central bank to the fastest price growth in Poland in two decades.

President Duda recently asked parliament to reappoint Glapiński as the head of the National Bank of Poland for another six-year term, reportedly saying he was “happy with Glapiński’s record.”

Source: Radio Poland

Oscar nominations were announced yesterday, with a well-known Polish cinematographer and a fledgling filmmaker among those vying for a prestigious Academy Award.

Cinematographer Janusz Kamiński is nominated for an Oscar for his work on Steven Spielberg’s “West Side Story,” an adaptation of the 1957 musical.

The Pole is among five nominees in the Best Cinematography category, as announced by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences on Tuesday. He is in the running for an Academy Award against Greig Fraser (Dune), Dan Laustsen (Nightmare Alley), Ari Wegner (The Power of the Dog), and Bruno Delbonnel (The Tragedy of Macbeth).

Kamiński has already won two Best Cinematography Oscars, one for “Schindler’s List” in 1994 and the other for “Saving Private Ryan” in 1999.

This year’s Oscar nominee list also includes “The Dress,” a 30-minute film up for an award in the Best Live Action Short Film category. The film was part of a project director Tadeusz Łysiak was working on while a student of directing at the Warsaw Film School.

“The Dress” previously took home awards for Best Narrative Short at last year’s Atlanta Film Festival, with lead actress Anna Dzieduszycka also winning the Best Actress prize at the Rhode Island International Film Festival.

The ceremony for the 94th Academy Awards is set to take place in Hollywood on March 27.

Source: Radio Poland, warsawfilmschool.com, oscars.org

City Bike Global SA has officially signed a contract to relaunch the popular “Mevo” metropolitan bike-share system over the next year.

Several changes will be introduced in the new “Mevo 2.0” system, including the availability of both traditional and electric bikes, along with a decentralized battery charging system and an increased battery range of up to 100km per charge for each electric bike.

A monthly subscription will cost PLN 29.90, with an annual subscription available for PLN 259. Subscribers will have a daily allowance of 60 minutes on an electric bike or 120 minutes on a traditional bicycle.

Those exceeding daily subscription limits or not wanting a monthly or annual subscription will be able to rent a bike at the set cost of PLN 0.15 per minute on a traditional bike and PLN 0.30 per minute on an electric bike.

The project with be implemented in three stages, with the full launch expected to last no longer than 14 months. Half the bikes in the fleet will be available for participants to test for free during one of the exploratory phases.

Sixteen local governments are set to participate in the project, including the major metropolitan areas of Gdańsk, Gdynia, and Sopot, along with outlying districts such as Władysławowo, Kartuzy, Tczew, and Stężyca.

Source: Radio Gdańsk

Weather

Today will be overcast and wet, with a strong breeze coming in from the west and a good chance of rain throughout the afternoon. Temperatures will be slightly warmer than yesterday, with a high around 9°C, or 41°F, dropping to an overnight low of 3°C or 37°F.  Slightly cooler temps are expected tomorrow, with a chance for some rain again tomorrow afternoon.

Elizabeth Peck