Bulgaria prepares to join the euro — but Poland couldn’t be less interested

BRUSSELS — As the European Union's poorest country Bulgaria readies to enter the eurozone, the bloc’s economic star pupil Poland is further than ever from joining.

The European Central Bank is widely expected to give the nod Wednesday for Bulgaria to become the 21st country in the eurozone from the start of 2026.

Despite its domestic political divisions, Bulgaria has long shown commitment to joining the single currency, pegging its own currency to the euro back in 1999, taking part in the banking union since 2020, and making sure it hit all the grueling economic criteria to become a member.

But while Bulgaria strains to join the club, one entrant that everyone would welcome — Poland — seems to have no interest in joining. And after the narrow victory of right-wing nationalist Karol Nawrocki in the country’s presidential election on Sunday, the prospect of Poland's joining the club anytime soon seems remote.

Poland has had three decades of consistent economic growth. Its stock market is booming. Its gross domestic product growth, at 3.2 percent this year according to an International Monetary Fund forecast, outstrips the eurozone's 0.8 percent. But still, its stated intention to join the eurozone is going nowhere fast.

Ready or not

Although it is mandatory for EU countries to make efforts join the common currency, Poland has made no secret of its lack of desire to join. Even after the country regained a pro-EU government under Donald Tusk in 2023, ending eight years of Euroskeptic rule, the government still said it wasn't ready to join the eurozone.

With Nawrocki as president, that prospect is even dimmer. Nawrocki is against Poland's joining the euro, saying in an X post last month: “I am personally against the elimination of the Polish currency. A vote for me is also a vote for the Polish zloty and our sovereignty.”

Adam Glapiński, the Polish central bank governor, has long opposed the country's adoption of the euro, and as president, Nawrocki will have the power to appoint Glapiński’s successor when his term ends in June 2027, meaning he could cement Euroskepticism in the bank for another six years.

Nawrocki will also hold veto power over legislation, a tool he’s likely to use to frustrate Prime Minister Donald Tusk’s liberal pro-EU government, which lacks the three-fifths majority in the Polish parliament to override a veto. Tusk has already called a parliamentary vote of confidence in his government over fears that Nawrocki will use the presidency to block Tusk’s domestic agenda.

Add to that the muted response to the euro among Polish citizens — where just over half are in favor of adopting the currency, but 70 percent say the country isn't ready to join the eurozone — and it's clear that if the eurozone expects Poland to join the club, it may be in for a long wait.