Poland: Turning From Russian Style Extraction To European Inclusion
After Poland freed itself from Soviet control, it made solid forward movement toward democratic inclusion. But, in 2015, the Law and Justice Party (Prawo i Sprawiedliwość, PiS) overhauled courts, sidelined independent checks, and tightened political control over public media and institutions. It looked like Poland was returning to an extractive, authoritarian, Russian style government. Independent scholars at the V-Dem Institute classified Poland as moving significantly toward authoritarianism. (V-Dem)
That’s when the EU stepped in with Article 7, the bloc’s most serious rule-of-law mechanism. This included freezing tens of billions of euros in recovery and cohesion funds to force a change.
And it worked
The course correction
Since late 2023, Donald Tusk’s pro-EU coalition government, and coalition partners, Civic Coalition, Third Way, and The Left moved to restore the rule of law and repair relations with the European Union. (European Commission)
Since then:
V-Dem’s 2025 Democracy Report lists Poland as a “U-turn” case, reversing authoritarianism and returning to liberal democracy.
The World Justice Project listed Poland as the most-improved country worldwide in 2024 (World Justice Project).
The EU announced its intention to close the Article 7(1) procedure, judging there was no longer a “clear risk” of a serious breach of the rule of law in May 2024 (European Commission).
The EU began sending money to Poland. The Polish government now has access to as much as €137 billion in funds and is well on its way back to an inclusive and free nation. (European Commission)
Balance and caveats
Rights groups welcomed the new direction but warned against declaring victory too soon. Human Rights Watch criticized the Commission’s decision to close Article 7 as premature, arguing that more needs to be done. This is a fair caution because changing government and laws is the ‘easy’ part; changing an entire system is the hard, slow part. (Human Rights Watch)
Why this matters for ordinary people
Rule-of-law sounds abstract; daily life isn’t. When courts are independent and rules are clear, people can act without guessing. Contracts are enforced the same way for everyone, not just the well-connected. Small businesses get licenses on time; tenants and landlords know how disputes will be resolved; banks can issue mortgages with confidence; public tenders are posted and awarded by clear criteria; police need proper warrants, tax rules are applied consistently, and services work better. In short, you can plan a job, a purchase, or an investment, because the rules don’t shift overnight.
People are already experiencing gains with Poland’s substantial and rapid improvement. With the constraints on power and justice tightened compared with a year earlier, life has improved. (World Justice Project)
Cultural dimensions that help explain the path
Poland’s changes work because they match what people want from government: clear rules and fair treatment. With high uncertainty avoidance, people prefer stability. Restoring independent courts, writing down procedures, and meeting EU checkpoints make life more predictable. Stronger checks on leaders also cut back on favoritism. Results depend more on “what the law says,” not “who you know.”
How reforms are done matters, too. Poland is moving from special deals (particularism) to the same rules for everyone (universalism), and from informal understandings (high-context) to written, trackable standards (low-context). Framing these steps as fairness, order, and safety fits the Polish cultural perspective.
Hornby’s archetypes - how leadership style supports the turnaround
Hornby’s Blue / Guardian traits are central for protecting institutions such as independent courts and clean administration. West / Sage traits support evidence-driven, legalistic repair of institutions, while East / Communicator traits matter for coalition-building and public buy-in around sometimes technical judicial reforms. These archetypal tilts don’t replace data; they describe how change is being led in ways consistent with the indicators above.
Bottom line
Poland spent much of the last decade moving toward Russian authoritarianism. Over the past 18–24 months, that trajectory has turned. And it’s measurable: a rise in the World Justice Project’s Rule of Law Index, formal EU steps to reopen funding and close Article 7, and V-Dem’s designation as a “U-turn” case. The direction is positive but not guaranteed. Follow-through on judicial reforms and clean administration will decide how durable and how inclusive the gains become.
But the bigger point is that even as the United States struggles with internal division and Russia threatens Europe, many countries are getting better. Poland is one example among a growing set of places strengthening rules, widening opportunity, and delivering services that work. The world is not only in crisis; there is real positive progress taking place, and Poland’s recent turn shows what that looks like in practice.
Join us on TikTok or YouTube for more cultural perspective
Tiktok failed to load.Enable 3rd party cookies or use another browser
