Poland's capital, Warsaw, registered its first same-sex marriage today, implementing court rulings requiring the country to recognize same-sex marriages registered abroad.
The European Union's highest court in November ordered Poland to register same-sex marriages performed in other EU countries, even if Polish law does not currently allow it.
In March, Poland's Supreme Administrative Court invoked that ruling, ordering authorities to recognize a marriage between two Polish men contracted in Germany.
"This morning we issued the first copy of a marriage certificate for a same-sex couple, in accordance with court rulings," said Warsaw Mayor Rafal Tchaskowski.
The mayor also promised that his city would proactively recognize other Polish same-sex marriages registered elsewhere in the EU, even without a specific court ruling.
Prime Minister Donald Tusk said on Tuesday that his government would find ways to implement the rulings as soon as possible and, addressing same-sex couples, apologized to "all those who have felt rejected and humiliated for years."
Tusk appealed to Polish officials, regardless of their personal opinions, "to respect the dignity of every person and to remember that these people live around us, among us, close to us, and deserve the same feelings of respect, dignity and love as any other person."
LGBT+ people have been fighting for equal rights in Poland for decades, where same-sex marriage and civil partnerships are illegal. Neither ruling means Poland is obligated to legalize same-sex marriage.
Tusk's government came to power promising to legalize civil unions for same-sex couples. But resistance from conservatives within his own ruling coalition, as well as opposition from President Karol Nawrocki, a staunch Catholic, has stalled those efforts.
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