The Democrat-controlled US House of Representatives began public hearings last Wednesday as part of the investigation into the possible impeachment of US President Donald Trump.
Nearly 14 million Americans tuned in to watch opening speeches by House Intelligence Committee members including Democratic chair Adam Schiff and ranking Republican Devin Nunes, who disparagingly referred to the process as “a television theater spectacle.” At issue is the US President’s conduct concerning foreign aid to Ukraine in exchange for political favors.
Several key witnesses provided testimony last week, including the top diplomats William Taylor and George Kent, as well as former US Ambassador to Ukraine Marie Yovanovitch. Hearings continued throughout the weekend, with more high-ranking officials and diplomats set to testify this week. Trump himself has also floated the idea of testifying before the panel, a move welcomed by Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi.
Source: PAP
In a tweet posted yesterday, US Ambassador to Poland Georgette Mosbacher fired back at French President Emmanual Macron’s earlier assessment of NATO as an organization experiencing “brain death.”
“Dear President Macron,” writes Mosbacher, “in Poland the #NATO alliance is very much alive, and the US engagement with our Polish allies is also strong, alive & well!”
Her comments echo those made by Prime Minister Mateusz Morewiecki in an interview with the Financial Times last week, in which he praised NATO as “the most important alliance in the world when it comes to preserving freedom and peace” and described Macron’s remarks as “dangerous.”
Macron made the critical comments in an interview with The Economist earlier this month, in which he lamented an alarming lack of cooperation between Europe and the United States and questioned the solidarity of NATO states in the event of an actual security threat.
Source: The First News (TFN), Reuters
One of the Gdynia’s most recognizable landmarks, the sailing ship Dar Pomorza, was towed to Gdansk Shipyard “Remontowa” for renovations yesterday.
Built in 1909, the former German, French, and Polish training ship has been moored for five years at the Presidential Embankment in Gdynia where she has been preserved as part of the collection of the National Maritime Museum since May 1983.
The historic tall ship is one of the most-visited tourist destinations in Pomerania, with over 125,000 tourists having already visited the famed „White Frigate” since January of this year. The ship is scheduled to return to Gdynia at the beginning of December after the completion of some 900,000 złoty in repairs and renovations.
Famed Gdańsk illustrator, cartoonist, and caricaturist Zbigniew Jujka passed away yesterday at the age of 84.
For over fifty years (with a break during the martial law period), Jujka published the satirical cartoon series “Dzienniczek” or “Diary,” a commentary on the most important political and social events of the week in Poland and around the world.
After graduating from what is now the Gdańsk Academy of Fine Arts, he made his debut as a satirist and cartoonist in 1953 in Gazeta Zielonogórska, later joining the publication Dziennik Baltycki as a contributor and graphic editor. He also collaborated with other publishers in Poland and abroad, designed book illustrations and posters, and was the co-author of the album anthology Third Republic in Caricature.
Weather
Today will be mostly cloudy and overcast with light rain showers possible overnight. Temperatures during the day will be slightly warmer than yesterday with a high of 10 degrees Celsius or 50 degrees Fahrenheit accompanied by a moderate breeze from the south. Occasional rain showers and similar temperatures will continue throughout the week with clearer skies expected on Sunday.
RGEN NEWS/EP
