The Polish Minister of Foreign Affairs indicated Monday, October 3 that his country wanted to start negotiations with Germany on reparations for the Second World War, estimated by Warsaw at one thousand three hundred billion euros.
Minister Zbigniew Rau told the press on Monday that he had signed a diplomatic note expressing "
the conviction (...) that the parties must take immediate steps towards a permanent, complete and definitive legal and material settlement of the consequences of the German Aggression and Occupation of 1939-1945
”.
The note must be sent to the head of German diplomacy Annalena Baerbock expected Monday evening in Warsaw and who must meet Zbigniew Rau on Tuesday.
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This settlement should include in particular "
the payment by the Federal Republic of Germany of compensation for material and non-material losses caused to the Polish State by this aggression and this occupation
", indicated Zbigniew Rau.
According to the Minister, this settlement should also include the payment of compensation to the victims of Nazi aggression and their family members, as well as a systemic solution to the issue of seized Polish cultural property and archival documents .
"Basing Polish-German relations on justice and truth"
"
Such a settlement will make it possible to base Polish-German relations on justice and truth, will lead to the closing of painful chapters of the past and will ensure the further development of bilateral relations in the spirit of good neighborliness and friendly cooperation
," he said. again underlined Zbigniew Rau.
In a report published on 1st September Warsaw estimated its losses during the Second World War at 6.2 trillion zlotys (1,300 billion EUR).
Of this total "
a very important part is the compensation for the death of more than 5.2 million Polish citizens
", then underlined Jaroslaw Kaczynski, leader of the ruling Law and Justice party, adding that the process before Poland receiving these reparations would be "
long and difficult
".
According to Germany, Poland waived war reparations in 1953 and repeatedly confirmed this waiver.
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Berlin has opposed the same arguments to the claims for reparations raised in the past by Greece.
For the Polish liberal opposition, the debate on war reparations revived by the conservatives is above all intended for domestic political purposes, one year before the general elections.