Poland's foreign minister announced his resignation Thursday in the fourth high-level departure this week from the country's right-wing government.
Jacek Czaputowicz had said last month that he was expecting to leave the government as part of a reshuffle following the recent reelection of President Andrzej Duda, who is closely allied with Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki's government.
Czaputowicz said in July that he wasn't under pressure to go.
German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas,left, and Polish Foreign Minister Jacek Czaputowicz greet each other with an elbow bump, used instead of a handshake during the coronavirus pandemic, in Warsaw, Poland, Tuesday, June 16, 2020.(AP PhotoCzarek Sokolowski)
On Thursday, the Foreign Ministry said: “The minister previously stated that after the presidential election is a good time to change the head of Polish diplomacy and expressed the conviction that his successor will continue the current line and foster further strengthening of Poland’s position in the international arena."
Czaputowicz's resignation follows the departures this week of the health minister, his deputy and the deputy minister of digitization.
Last weekend, he hosted U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who was in Warsaw to sign a deal deepening Polish-American defense cooperation.
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, left, meets with Poland's Foreign Minister Jacek Czaputowicz in Lazienki Palace in Warsaw, Poland, Saturday Aug. 15, 2020. Pompeo is on a five day visit to central Europe. (Janek SkarzynskiPool via AP)