Polish sovereignty and the European Union - The analysis of sovereignty as a political tool in the words of the Polish President Andrzej Duda

Sammanfattning: The juridical reforms proposed by the Polish government have brought the attention of European institutions. The conflict concerns the matter of sovereignty, as the reforms conducts changes on domestic level. The paper discusses how national identity of states can shape the understanding of sovereignty. The paper aims to understand how sovereignty can be used as a political tool in relation between Poland and the European Union. The research question asks, “How Polish national identity constitutes the EU as a threat to sovereignty?”. To answer this question, the thesis applies poststructuralist’s concepts to the narrative analysis on speeches of the Polish President Andrzej Duda. The results of the thesis indicate that sovereignty can be understood subjectively, thus can be used as a political tool that can legitimise and justify policies as well as construct relations with others.