Rows over Kaczynski’s memorial could overshadow presidential inauguration

Poland's newly elected president Bronislaw Komorowski was sworn in at a lavish ceremony in Warsaw on Friday, but rows over a memorial dedicated to the late president Lech Kaczynski overshadowed the ceremony.

Komorowski succeeds Kaczynski, whose plane crashed in western Russia in April, killing him along with a delegation of Polish officials.

The inauguration is scheduled to start with Komorowski taking an oath at 10:00 local time, followed by a mass service and a celebratory ceremony at the Royal Castle.

However, concerns have been raised that Komorowski may face difficulties moving to his residence at the Presidential Palace, as demonstrators have gathered outside the building to protest the removal of a memorial cross dedicated to the death of Lech Kaczynski.

Komorowski had ordered the removal of the cross with the intention of relocating it to one of the cathedrals in central Warsaw.