Poland to pressurize Germany over reparations demand

Admin l Tuesday, December 6, 2022

 

BERLIN – The Polish government wants to increase pressure on Germany to meet its demand for World War II reparations, the country’s deputy foreign minister has told dpa in an interview.

“The question of reparations has fundamental importance for Poland – this is not just a political issue, but it is about Poland’s dignity,” Deputy Foreign Minister and Reparations Commissioner Arkadiusz Mularczyk told dpa at the start of a visit to Berlin.

“Germany has a choice: either it sits down at the negotiating table with Poland, or we will raise the issue in all international forums – in the UN, the Council of Europe and the European Union,” he said.

As chairman of a parliamentary commission, Mularczyk had a report prepared on the war damage inflicted on Poland by Nazi Germany during World War II. The amount of damage was put at €1.3 trillion ($1.4 trillion).

“This matter cannot be sat out by the German government until the next election,” Mularczyk said. “There has to be a dialogue on this issue, otherwise it would be very bad for our neighbourhood.”

Mularczyk will hold talks in Berlin on Tuesday and Wednesday with officials including Anna Lührmann, who is responsible for European matters at the Foreign Ministry.

The German government’s long-standing position is that the matter is settled and there will be no reparations.