2023-11-02 19:25 update: 2023-11-03, 13:44
Photo PAP/Marian Zubrzycki
Relations between Poland and Germany are nowhere near what would be considered as desirable, Poland's foreign minister said, mentioning a dispute over war reparations and differing visions of the EU's further development.
Zbigniew Rau attended a ministerial conference dedicated EU enlargement policy and institutional reforms in Berlin on Thursday.
"The biggest problem is that the German side does not accept all the conclusions that follow from the report on war losses and is not, in a constructive manner, responding to all the issues that we raised in the note that we sent to the German government over a year ago."
Last year, the Polish government prepared a comprehensive war losses report and sent a diplomatic note to Germany asking for compensation for the massive levels of destruction Poland endured at German hands during the Second World War.
The government has set the claim at EUR 1.3 trillion.
But Berlin argues that Poland waived all claims against Germany during communist times. The Law and Justice (PiS) government has countered this saying that at that time Poland could not make fully sovereign decisions as it was a communist satellite of Moscow.
Moreover, Rau said, the view of the Polish government completely differs from the one held by the German side when it comes to European integration.
"We are in favour of a Europe of sovereign states and the German side is obviously striving to change the way the European Union functions," Rau said.
Poland has opposed any plans for a more federalised Europe, warning this could lead to the creation of a "super-state" that would trample upon national interests of the EU's member states.
Rau said he was concerned that the issue of the EU's enlargement, which Poland supports, could be tied with the idea of Europe's federalisation and that "this may lead to a delay in the process of EU enlargement or be seen as grounds against this enlargement." (PAP)
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