After the most rapid accession process in NATO history, Finland formally joined the Western military alliance as its 31st member on Tuesday.

The Nordic country’s accession was finalized at a ceremony at NATO headquarters in Brussels, Belgium on April 4, accompanied by the raising of the Finnish flag alongside the flag of other NATO members, and the playing of the Finnish national anthem and the official NATO Hymn.

Polish Foreign Minister Zbigniew Rau hailed Finland’s entry to the alliance, telling reporters that the country would be “a very strong link on NATO’s eastern flank.”

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky also congratulated Finland on its accession, calling NATO “the only effective security guarantee in the region amid Russian aggression” and suggesting that the upcoming NATO summit in Vilnius would “bring Ukraine closer to our Euro-Atlantic goal.”

Across the Atlantic, US President Joe Biden welcomed Finland’s entry to NATO in a special statement, pointing directly to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine as the catalyst for Finland to embark on “the fastest ratification process in NATO’s modern history.”

Biden went on to say he “look[ed] forward to welcoming Sweden as a NATO member as soon as possible,” encouraging Turkey and Hungary to finalize their ratification processes “without delay.”

Source: Radio Gdańsk, Polskie Radio

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and First Lady Olena Zelenska are in Warsaw today to talk with Polish officials and visit fellow Ukrainians living in Poland.

According to Marcin Przydacz, head of the Presidential Office of International Policy, Zelensky will meet with President Duda this morning for talks on security, economic, political, and historical issues.

He is then set to meet with Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki in the afternoon to discuss regional security and bilateral matters, including border crossings and Ukrainian grain shipments.

Following their official state meetings, the President and First Lady of Ukraine plan to meet with Ukrainians living in Poland. The day will reportedly conclude with a joint public speech of the presidents of Poland and Ukraine at 18.00 at the Royal Castle in Warsaw.

The visit to Warsaw marks Zelensky’s first official visit to Poland since Russia invaded Ukraine. The two presidents met for informal working meetings twice before, in December 2022 and February 2023, both times in Rzeszów.

Source: Radio Gdańsk, PAP, Polskie Radio

The Chief Sanitary Inspectorate in Poland issued a warning on Tuesday against consuming potentially contaminated pierogi.

According to the Główny Inspektorat Sanitarny (GIS), a recently tested batch of pork meat pierogi manufactured by the company Wiejski Młyn was found to contain listeria monocytogenes bacteria. The company issued a recall for its pierogi products containing cheese or pork, effective March 29, 2023.

Consuming food contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes bacteria can lead to a disease called listeriosis, which can pose a serious health threat for pregnant women, newborns, older adults, and people with weakened immune systems. According to the US-based Centers for Disease Control (CDC) “most people with invasive listeriosis require hospital care, and about one in five people with the infection die.”

GIS has warned consumers to return or dispose of the affected products and contact a doctor immediately if they are experiencing symptoms of listeriosis after eating these or similar products.

Information on symptoms related to Listeria monocytogenes infection and a complete list of the recalled items are available on the GIS website at https://www.gov.pl/web/gis/glowny-inspektorat-sanitarny.

Recalled product details:
“Pierogi z mięsem wieprzowym” from Wiejski Młyn or Swojscy, 500 g, lot number 079, best before April 2023.

“Pierogi z serem” from Wiejski Młyn or Swojscy, 500 g, production date March 20, 2023, batch number 079, best before April 2023.

Manufacturer: Wiejski Młyn Sp. z o. o., Kolejowa 10A, 23-200 Kraśnik, sanitary identification number: PL 06074001 WE.

Source: PAP

Five endangered cheetah cubs born at the Gdańsk zoo last summer were officially given names this week, thanks to the winners of the Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity auction.

The litter of five cubs, four females and a male, were born last August at the Gdańsk zoo, one of only two litters of the endangered species born in captivity in Europe last year.

The naming rights for the five cubs were auctioned off as part of the Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity, or WOŚP last January, with the payment technology company ITCARD claiming the winning bid of over PLN 21,000, or roughly EUR 4,500.

According to Adam Matyaszek, Vice-President of the Management Board of ITCARD, the company had been closely following the auction “from the beginning and wanted to win it…it was important for us to actually leave our mark here.”

The company chose names that corresponded to their business profile, choosing to name the lone male cub “Cash,” and the four female cubs “Planeta, Appka, Paya, and Pinia.”

More information on the cubs can be found on the official website and facebook page of the Gdańsk Zoo.

Source: Radio Gdańsk, gdansk.pl

Weather

Today will be cold and cloudy with only a slight chance of rain or snow and a very light breeze coming from the northwest. Temperatures will remain on the chilly side, with a daytime high of 4°C or 39°F dropping to a low of -2°C or 29°F overnight. Similar weather is expected tomorrow, with an increasing chance of rain or snow showers starting tomorrow evening.

Elizabeth Peck