Poland defiant as EU fines loom over disciplining judges

FILE PHOTO: The flags of Poland and European Union are tied together during a rally in support of Poland's membership in the European Union after the country's Constitutional Tribunal ruled on the primacy of the constitution over EU law, undermining a key tenet of European integration, in Rzeszow, Poland, October 10, 2021. Patryk Ogorzalek/Agencja Gazeta via REUTERS

BRUSSELS/WARSAW (Reuters) - A Polish minister has accused the European Union of making "illegal demands" on his country ahead of a Jan.11 deadline by which Warsaw is meant to inform Brussels of how and when exactly it plans to dismantle a disciplinary system for judges.

Failure to act would mean Poland having to pay at least 70 million euros in fines, further delay in accessing billions of euros to support its economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, and the possible loss of additional development funds.