UPDATE - Poland slams EU parliament resolution

UPDATES WITH STATEMENT FROM HUNGARY

By Mehmet Yilmaz

WARSAW (AA) - Poland's Foreign Ministry on Wednesday criticized a resolution passed by the EU Parliament about starting a "rule-of-law" procedure on Polish government.

Through the resolution, which was passed Wednesday with 438 in favor to 152 against and 71 abstentions, the lawmakers demand that Article 7 of the EU treaty be triggered. Such a procedure could lead to Poland losing its EU voting rights.

The EU lawmakers have expressed concern over a recent push for reforms that the European Parliament believes can undermine judicial independence and the rule of law.

Poland's Foreign Ministry, in a written statement on its website, said the European Parliament's resolution "comes at a very inopportune moment, when the parliamentary stage of the legislative process has only just begun in Poland".

"We respect the right of the European Parliament, as the EU’s representative body, to express its own views. Having said that, the EP resolution is a one-sided document that is too often based on political assessments, while making too little use of in-depth legal analysis. Such an approach is detrimental to the process of European integration as it only leads to stigmatizing a member state," the statement said.

Hungary also reacted to the resolution, describing it as "scandalous" and "disgraceful".

"Hungary stands with Poland and it is not even possible to accept the decision," said the country's deputy prime minister Zsolt Semjen, cited by the Hungarian News Agency.

"Hungary will block it," he added.