Judgment_paragraph 72 · European Commission v Republic of Poland (C-204/21)

72In those circumstances, there is no ground for maintaining that the requirements arising, as conditions for both accession to and participation in the European Union, from respect for values and principles such as the rule of law, effective judicial protection and judicial independence, enshrined in Article 2 and the second subparagraph of Article 19(1) TEU, are capable of affecting the national identity of a Member State, within the meaning of Article 4(2) TEU. Therefore, the latter provision, which must be read taking into account the provisions, of the same rank, enshrined in Article 2 and the second subparagraph of Article 19(1) TEU, cannot exempt Member States from the obligation to comply with the requirements arising from those provisions.