Poland has been rocked by nationwide protests that the opposition framed as a new Solidarity movement but which was condemned by government supporters as a Soros-backed regime change operation.

The ruling Law and Justice Party, also known by its abbreviation PiS, secured the country’s first-ever parliamentary majority in the last elections, and has since embarked on a quest to reshape the country in line with its conservative values. Part of this mission involves reforming the country’s Constitutional Court to remove the judges that the Civil Platform opposition party, popularly referred to by its abbreviation PO, installed just prior to their electoral defeat. PiS understands that it must absolutely succeed in this endeavor if it’s to stand any chance at executing its long-term national vision for Poland.

It’s precisely for this reason, however, that PO marshalled tens of thousands of its supports to oppose PiS’ efforts, taking advantage of the fact that former PO leader and one-time Prime Minister Donald Tusk is now President of the European Council and is actively involved in turning liberal EU institutions against the new conservative Polish government. From the perspective of PO, its supporters, and an increasing number of influential voices in the EU, the PiS authorities in Poland are “dismantling democracy” and taking the country on the path of a “dictatorship” which they derisively compare to Hungarian leader Vikor Orban’s pro-sovereignty government. For these dramatic reasons, they also liken their current anti-government struggle to the one that their parents waged a generation ago in forming Solidarity to oppose the communists.

From the reverse perspective, however, Polish Foreign Minister Witold Waszczykowski accused “media conglomerates, banks and international corporations” of conspiring to stage “attempts to overthrow the government”, remarking that “the question of courts, reforms… is only an excuse.” Although not directly stated, comments such as his are usually regarded as euphemisms that George Soros and his shadowy network of “activists” are involved in one way or another, an idea which has also been floated around by others. They believe that the transnational neoliberal elite of the EU are provoking a Color Revolution scenario in the country in order to punish it for refusing to abide by Brussels’ migrant demands and other unilateral impositions of the bloc’s will.