Krynica, the Davos of Eastern Europe

According to the International Monetary Fund, the GDP of euro zone will fall by 0.2%. Nonetheless, European economy is still worth 18 thousand dollars and it remains the most important in the world. This “piece of evidence” has been recalled during the 23rd Economic Forum in Krynica Zdroj in Poland. Three days of debates, from September 3rd to 5th, with the participation of various personalities of the political and entrepreneurial realms, this year focused on the new world order, highlighting the perspective – and the role – of Eastern Europe. “We are witnessing fundamental changes in our perception of economic theories, of the economy itself, of society and democracy”, remarked the organizers of the meeting promoted by the “Foundation institute for Oriental Studies”, which envisages two possible scenarios. “Either countries will strengthen their economic bonds and mutual cooperation, or we will reach the stage where a rivalry between the states, in the form of currency wars or competition for capital, will appear”. The growth of Polish economy. Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, in the panel speech delivered at the “Davos of Eastern Europe”, said: “What in Europe is said with ever greater courage, we are able to confirm here in Poland: the crisis in Europe is ending”. Tusk presented the figures on the evolution of Polish economy over the past 5 years: national GDP growth, amounting to approximately 20%, salary increase and the growth of per capita income. Tusk said that the government expected economic growth to surpass 1.5 percent in the scale of entire year. “Economic growth in the coming year is likely to be higher than 3 percent”, he added. Wilhelm Molterer, Vice-president of the European Investment Bank, whilst identifying signs of economic growth in Europe, at the same time pointed to a high level of unemployment, “posing a serious threat for the future of the continent”. He voiced his concern over the fact that businessmen are uncertain about the effects of changes introduced by governments of individual countries, including East-European countries. A United States representative in Brussels Elena Bryan, stressed that “progress in reforms across EU countries needs to maintained”. “I think that we’ll see improvement in the  economic situation next year”, said Mario Baldassarri, former Italian Deputy Minister for Economic Development, who is convinced that “Trade and market liberalization lead to increase in employment and finally to economic growth”. Cooperation and diversity. “The most important lesson we have drawn from the crisis is that EU Countries are very different from each other”, remarked Professor Dariusz Filar, a Councillor of the Polish Premier. Recalling that before the crisis emphasis was placed on unification and convergence at European level, he remarked: “We now see that situations and the way of reacting to the crisis of every nation is different”. In his opinion the EU must “continue facing the challenge of raising awareness on its diversity within its borders”. The complexities of the old continent, according to Polish Finance minister Miroslaw Gronicki, are all the more evident in the banking system. “In euro zone countries 16 large banks handle 50% of debits and 600 smaller banks – he recalled – while there are two thousand financial institutions in non-euro zone countries”. “Those 16 banks have different problems compared to smaller banks”, he added. “Poland and the other Countries with their own currency develop more rapidly also because they always have the possibility of resorting to monetary policies (such as depreciation – ed.’s note) to solve their economic problems”.The role of the Churches. During the Forum, Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine Oleksandr Wilkul mentioned that his Country will sign the Association Agreement with the EU during the November summit in Vilnius, and highlighted the need to intensify cooperation with the member states of the Customs Union (Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan), in the framework of the WTO. For the first time the Forum discussed the role of the Churches, notably the Catholic and Orthodox Churches, for the unity of Europe and for the building of civil society. “In order for it to be fruitful, dialogue should be based on universal values such as human dignity, the value of life, the family and marriage”, concluded Msgr. Henryk Muszynski, archbishop emeritus of Gniezno. Participants conveyed their interest for a debate on this theme and called for a continuation in the next Forum meetings.