Polish-German intergovernmental consultations were held on Monday in Berlin. Prime Minister Donald Tusk announced during a joint press conference with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz that If our country does not obtain a quick and unambiguous declaration from Germany regarding the payment of compensation to living Polish victims of World War II, it will consider the decision to have Poland meet this need from its own resources..
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Tusk also noted that Poland “has not received compensation for the losses and crimes of World War II.”
The president comments on the prime minister's words
President Karol Nawrocki, asked by journalists about this matter at Tuesday's press conference in Rzeszów-Jasionka, said that He was “saddened” by Tusk's words.
— What Prime Minister Donald Tusk said in Berlin worries me very much. Whereas I (…) on behalf of the Polish nation, I appeal to both the Chancellor and the President of Germany seriously to seriously consider the issue of compensation that Poland is entitled to after the destruction during World War II – said the president.
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– I hope that Prime Minister Donald Tusk will apologize to Poles for these words and say that they are just an expression of some misunderstanding – added Nawrocki, then emphasized that we should talk to Germans about difficult issues, but “he does not know of a solution to the historical or political problem, neither in terms of decency or historical truth, in which the victims themselves pay for the evil suffered by the occupier and the invader.”
The president also expressed hope that he would be able to count on the Polish government in its “efforts to seek compensation from the German state.”
The issue of war reparations is “clarified”. Friedrich Merz on compensation
During a joint press conference with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, the head of the Polish government raised the issue of possible compensation payments by Germany to still living Polish citizens who were directly harmed by the actions of the Germans during World War II. He emphasized that when he talked about compensation with the previous chancellor, Olaf Scholz, in recent years, it was about 60,000 people.
“Hurry up if you really want to make such a gesture,” the head of the Polish government said to the German side.
The German Chancellor stressed that the position of both his government and previous German governments is that the issue of war reparations is clarified from both a political and legal point of view.. He added that it is also clear to him that both commemorating the victims and facing history is a process that is never completed.
Read also: Poland recovers looted archives from Germany. “Historic day!”
Merz emphasized that Germany was admitting its historical responsibility here and was conducting talks with the Polish side. He expressed his belief that a good solution would be found from the point of view of both countries. On the issue of compensation for living victims of World War II, Merz said that Germany in the past “made 2 billion euros available to survivors of Nazi terror.”.
– We are talking about further possibilities of cooperation and humanitarian aid – he assured.
