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Today at Commission, Poland ‘evolving situation’ and German car probe

The Commission’s spokesperson said it was following events in Poland ‘very closely.’

Only hours after Polish President Andrzej Duda’s decision to veto controversial judiciary reforms after several national protests in the country, the Commission remained cautious on what impact the move would have on its own response.

“The Commission follows very closely all the events and the situation which is evolving as we speak,” said the Commission spokesman Margaritis Schinas, who confirmed European commissioners will discuss the Polish situation Wednesday.

Schinas could not say whether commissioners would decide on a sanction procedure against Poland — something the Commission threatened last week. Instead, the Commission will discuss “the global” situation in the country and “all the pieces of the puzzle” Schinas said.

He added that Frans Timmermans, the Commission first vice president in charge of the rule of law and the dialogue with Warsaw has not been in touch with the Polish government to discuss the draft bill.

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Schinas also confirmed the Commission is investigating a potential cartel in the German car industry. But the Commission’s spokesman for competition Ricardo Cardoso could not detail the status of the investigation or when the Commission’s lawyers received the information that prompted the investigation.

As first reported by POLITICO, Schinas confirmed the Commission is in contact with U.S. authorities to raise concerns over whether potential new sanctions imposed on Russia could harm EU’s companies. Despite numerous questions, he refused to elaborate how the Commission could “retaliate” if such sanctions were put in place.