Auschwitz
AuschwitzHaim Zach/GPO

Polish Prime Minister Beata Szydlo came under fire on Wednesday after she appeared to defend her government's anti-migrant policy during a speech a ceremony in Auschwitz.

At a ceremony commemorating the 77th anniversary of the first transport of prisoners who entered the Auschwitz-Birkenau camp, Szydlo said, according to Reuters, that "Auschwitz is a lesson showing that everything needs to be done to protect one's citizens".

She also said it was a great task for politicians to make sure that "such terrible events as those that took place in Auschwitz and other places of martyrdom never happen again".

The comments caused widespread outrage, with many taking them as a defense of the Polish nationalist-minded Law and Justice (PiS) party government's decision not to accept any refugees under a European Union resettlement plan.

"Such words in such a place should never come out from the mouth of a Polish prime minister," Donald Tusk, European Council president and an ex-prime minister of Poland, said in a tweet quoted by Reuters.

Former Defense Minister Tomasz Siemoniak said in a tweet that Szydlo's remarks were a "discredit".

The incident occurred a day after the EU decided to launch formal proceedings against three countries - including Poland - for refusing to accept migrant quotas.

The other two countries involved are Hungary, and the Czech Republic, representing the first legal step in infringement proceedings. The European Commission is keen to make an example out of countries that don’t tow the line on the issue, as it tries to redistribute tens of thousands of migrants from Greece and Italy.

Szydlo's words first appeared in a tweet by PiS that has since been removed, noted Reuters. Rafal Bochenek, the government's spokesman, said that people should listen to the entire speech of the prime minister before making any judgment.