Brussels faces the uncomfortable question of how to respond when one member state becomes a safe haven for politicians accused of corruption in another. Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has once again stepped in to shield a Polish political ally from possible imprisonment – but this time, the implications are far wider. By offering refuge to former justice minister and prosecutor general Zbigniew Ziobro, Orbán has plunged himself into Poland’s most polarising political and legal battle since Donald Tusk returned to power.
Ziobro, who led Poland’s justice system for nearly a decade, stands accused of running what prosecutors describe as an “organised group” that diverted money from the state-controlled Justice Fund – intended to support victims of crime, to loyal organisations and political allies. On 7 November, Poland’s Sejm voted 244 to 198 to authorise his arrest, following the earlier removal of his parliamentary immunity.
For the ruling coalition led by Prime Minister Tusk, the vote marks a turning point – a symbolic act of dismantling the legacy of the Law and Justice (PiS) era, when the judiciary was effectively subordinated to political control. For Orbán, however, sheltering Ziobro is both an ideological gesture and a pragmatic investment in Poland’s conservative opposition, which he hopes will one day return to power.
From prosecutor to fugitive
Ziobro’s case is unprecedented in modern Poland. Alongside former deputy ministers Marcin Romanowski and Michał Woś – both under investigation for embezzlement of public funds – he is accused of misappropriating millions of euros through a patronage network that used the Justice Fund for partisan purposes.
Romanowski is reportedly hiding in Hungary, where Ziobro himself has also been seen. On 30 October, he met Orbán in Budapest. Shortly after, the Hungarian leader posted on X: “Justice for Poland! Today in Budapest I met Zbigniew Ziobro, the former justice minister whom the Polish government wants to arrest – and all this in the heart of Europe, while Brussels stays silent.”
Ziobro, in turn, lashed out at Tusk’s government, claiming the prime minister was “acting on orders from Berlin” and turning the rule of law into “an empty slogan.” After the Sejm vote, he vowed not to “be silenced” and promised “legal and political steps” to defend his reputation, insisting that his case was “politically motivated.”
Warsaw’s balancing act
Tusk has dismissed those claims, stressing that today “courts and prosecutors are fully independent” and that Ziobro should face justice “in Poland, not in Budapest.” The prime minister ruled out any extrajudicial pursuit, noting that the matter “belongs to the prosecutor’s office and will proceed according to law.”
For Tusk’s government, the prosecution of Ziobro is not just about accountability – it is also about restoring trust with Brussels. The European Commission had frozen billions in recovery funds over PiS-era judicial reforms that undermined judicial independence. Reversing Ziobro’s legacy could help unlock that money and show that Warsaw is once again committed to European legal standards.
Yet the case also risks deepening the divide between Poland’s pro-European government and President Karol Nawrocki, who hails from a conservative camp closer to the former ruling party. Their differing responses to the Ziobro affair highlight a wider struggle over who will define the country’s post-PiS future – and who will control the narrative of “restoring justice.”
Political and European fallout
Within PiS, Ziobro’s indictment is seen as an attack on the party’s identity. For its supporters, he was the architect of “sovereign justice” – a crusader against what they portrayed as an unaccountable judicial elite. For his critics, he personified political capture of the courts. The fall of such a central figure therefore carries enormous symbolic weight.
At the same time, Orbán’s decision to grant him refuge poses a serious challenge for the EU. Brussels faces the uncomfortable question of how to respond when one member state becomes a safe haven for politicians accused of corruption in another. While the European Arrest Warrant framework could apply, the political protection Ziobro enjoys in Hungary makes extradition unlikely.
The episode is also another strain in already tense Polish-Hungarian relations. Once close allies within the EU’s conservative camp, Warsaw and Budapest have drifted apart over Russia and Ukraine. Ziobro’s presence in Hungary now threatens to reopen that rift – and to test how far EU institutions can tolerate open defiance within their own borders.
A test of justice and stability
Ultimately, the Ziobro affair is about more than one man’s fate. It has become a test of whether Poland can rebuild a judiciary independent from political influence and whether Hungary is willing to remain bound by the Union’s shared legal order.
If Ziobro is eventually convicted, it would set a rare precedent of accountability for a former prosecutor general – and mark a defining moment in Poland’s democratic renewal. But if the case collapses, it could instead fuel PiS’s comeback narrative ahead of the 2027 elections.
In 2018 Hungary under Viktor Orbán actively facilitated the escape of former Macedonian Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski, convicted of corruption and facing prison, the episode demonstrating Orbán’s pattern of sheltering conservative allies from prosecutions.