Poland has opened a canal that it says will help counter Russia’s dominance and ensure the country is “safe and sovereign”. The canal linking the Vistula Lagoon to the Gdańsk Bay has been mired in environmental and economic controversies. Warsaw says the canal will allow ships to visit the port of Elbląg without needing Russian permission to use its Baltiysk Strait. President Andrzej Duda opened the canal on September 17 amid soaring tensions with Russia over Poland’s support to Ukraine.