Polish foreign minister apologises for MEP's Nazi salute

A debate about train and bus tickets spiraled out of control in European parliament yesterday as a Polish MEP gave a Nazi salute and cried out "ein volk, ein reich" in protest.

The incident occurred on Tuesday during a discussion about a German-led initiative to standardise ticketing for buses and trains across EU borders. Controversial Polish MEP Janusz Korwin-Mikke who has previously used the 'n-word' in the European parliament and said that "evolution has ensured that women are not too intelligent" was riled by the idea.

He claimed it was against the concept of diversity which the EU is meant to espouse and said that the group had adopted a mentality similar to the Nazi slogan "ein reich, ein volk, ein führer" only "this time it is "ein reich, ein volk, ein ticket". He followed this outburst up by raising his right hand in what appeared to be a Nazi salute.

"All the time if there is voting, we are voting for the unification of everything," Korwin-Mikke said while addressing the parliament in English.

Korwin-Mikke who has previously said that the European Commission building ought to be turned into a brothel and condemned democracy as "the stupidest form of government ever conceived" is yet to apologise for his actions.

Polish foreign minister Grzegorz Schetyna, however, has apologised for the MEP's behaviour on behalf of the Polish people. "We all are ashamed of such behaviour and we apologize to Europe, the European parliament, sorry [also] to the voters," Schetyna said in a statement on Polish news TVN24.

A spokesperson for the European parliament's President Martin Schulz also condemned Korwin-Mikke's comments and told Newsweek that the European parliament is looking at a potential punishment for the Polish politician's actions.

"Although the president was not in the chamber during this deplorable incident it was brought to our attention afterwards," the spokesperson said. "We have already launched a procedure to take sanctions which are available to us. A decision is likely to be taken during the next plenary session. Those measures range from the loss of daily expense allowances to restrictions to attend EP plenary sessions," the spokesperson added.

Uncommon Knowledge

Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.

Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.

About the writer


Lucy is the deputy news editor for Newsweek Europe. Twitter: @DraperLucy

To read how Newsweek uses AI as a newsroom tool, Click here.

Newsweek cover
  • Newsweek magazine delivered to your door
  • Newsweek Voices: Diverse audio opinions
  • Enjoy ad-free browsing on Newsweek.com
  • Comment on articles
  • Newsweek app updates on-the-go
Newsweek cover
  • Newsweek Voices: Diverse audio opinions
  • Enjoy ad-free browsing on Newsweek.com
  • Comment on articles
  • Newsweek app updates on-the-go