For nearly 16 months, Poland had perhaps the world's most unusual leadership — identical twin brothers as president and prime minister with the same round faces, crops of silver hair and defiantly patriotic views.
That twin act came to an end Monday when Jaroslaw Kaczynski resigned as prime minister in the wake of a bruising electoral defeat, paving the way for a new government that wants Polish troops out of Iraq and promises a better bargain in exchange for hosting a proposed U.S. missile defense shield.
Kaczynski's resignation leaves his brother, President Lech Kaczynski, to face three more years in office without the luxury of a prime minister to whom he is bound by the ties of blood, deep affection and a shared political philosophy.
Jaroslaw Kaczynski's socially conservative and nationalist Law and Justice party was ousted by voters in parliamentary elections on Oct. 21. The victor was Civic Platform, a pro-business party that seeks to improve ties with the European Union and vows to demand more from its alliance with the United States.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20071105/ap_on_re_eu/poland_new_government