Polish president to sign Lisbon Treaty on Saturday[fr] 

A statement on Kaczynski's website said a signing ceremony would take place on Saturday at 12.00 GMT. Guests would include European Commission chief José Manuel Barroso, Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt of Sweden, which holds the EU's rotating presidency, and the head of the European Parliament, former Polish prime minister Jerzy Buzek.

The confirmation came after some confusion over when the Polish President would sign. 

The Polish press had initially reported that Kaczyński could have signed the Lisbon Treaty on Wednesday (7 October), after his return from an official trip to Romania. In Bucharest, he gave reassurances that "Poland will not be an obstacle to the entry into force of the Treaty of Lisbon," according to a statement on the presidential website.

Kaczyński was then expected to sign the treaty on Sunday, "probably after his return from the Vatican in the afternoon," an official close to the Eurosceptic Polish president told the TVN24 television channel on Thursday morning (8 October).

"The president will keep his promises. He declared that in the case of a 'yes' vote in the second Irish referendum his decision would also be positive," said Aleksander Szczygło, the president's head of security, on Polish television.

Treaty to await last signature

After Kaczyński's signature, the Czech Republic will become the only EU country not to have ratified the text, which is still waiting for President Václav Klaus's approval (EurActiv 02/10/09). 

Kaczynski's announcement coincided with news that Czech President Vaclav Klaus had raised a fresh obstacle to ratification. 

Klaus told Reinfeldt that he wants a footnote added to the document before signing it into force. Klaus is also awaiting the outcome of a Czech constitutional court ruling on the treaty.

EU leaders are anxious to get the treaty fully ratified this year, before elections in the UK next spring which could see a triumph for Conservative leader David Cameron. Many in his party oppose Lisbon and are demanding a referendum on it (EurActiv 06/10/09).

(EurActiv with Reuters)