On 22 October 2020, during the eighth meeting of the State Parties to the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (OPCAT), the Polish candidate Jakub Czepek, PhD was elected a member of the Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture (SPT) with 49 votes in support.

On 22 October 2020, Minister Zbigniew Rau, acting on behalf of the Polish government, declared Poland’s support for the Geneva Consensus Declaration.

“In times of the pandemic, the V4 cooperation is more important than ever before,” stressed Minister Rau during his conversation with Hungary’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó.

“Poles all over the world have a ‘gene of solidarity’ in them,” said Secretary of State Szymon Szynkowski vel Sęk.

On 20 October, Minister of Foreign Affairs Zbigniew Rau received – as part of the first visit – the Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Germany to Warsaw, Arndt Freytag von Loringhoven. 

“My visit to Berlin – despite the difficult situation due to the COVID-19 pandemic – is an expression of significance that the Polish government attaches to keeping good relations with Germany, our neighbour, a close partner within the European Union and an ally within NATO. Continuing in-person meetings, despite the imposed restrictions, confirms the intensity of the bilateral political dialogue between our capitals,” said Minister Zbigniew Rau starting his two-day visit to Berlin.

The meeting of foreign ministers of the Weimar Triangle and Polish-French bilateral consultations were the key points of Foreign Minister Zbigniew Rau’s visit in Paris. Consultations of top diplomats of the Weimar Triangle member states were the first held in this format since 2016.

“We are in the middle of the pandemic, and facing its second wave. Therefore, it is key that individual countries, also at the level of the V4 region, inform each other of their actions and plans, and share experiences and knowledge to fight the pandemic more efficiently,” said Deputy Minister Szymon Szynkowski vel Sęk during a meeting to launch the virtual V4 Centre for COVID-19. The V4 initiative will complement contacts within the EU, WHO and other international structures.