On September 1, a report on the losses suffered by Poland as a result of German aggression and occupation during World War II was presented in Warsaw. It was reported that the total amount of Polish losses was more than PLN 6 billion 220 billion. A day later, Szymon Szynkowski vel Sęk submitted the report to the German coordinator for cooperation with Poland, Dietmar Nietan.

On Monday, Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki informed that a diplomatic note to the German government on reparations should be expected in the near future. This must be supported by “a very detailed analysis, material which not only shows our argument from a moral and historical point of view, but also from a political and legal point of view.”
Szynkowski vel Sęk said on Monday that in light of Poland’s efforts to obtain reparations, the entire schedule of activities of the Polish government had been prepared.

What will be the next step?

– The report has been published and submitted to the German side. The next step is to publish the report in the German language version, and present it to all important stakeholders, namely German politicians. Presentation of this report in the German public sphere should also be expected. The value of this education is very much needed. The German public should learn more about the German occupation of Poland, what disadvantages were associated with it – this is a huge task, but also a great opportunity related to the publication of the report, stressed the deputy minister.

Szymon Szynkowski vel Sęk stressed that publication of the report would result in the fact that the subject of reparations, which had been on the agenda for talks with Germany previously, would now be dealt with much more intensively. – The talk agenda always has it’s own covering many topics, this topic of reparations is present in it, but so far in the context of preparing the report. Now, of course, this issue is raised higher and will be raised during discussions at various levels. We will see how the position of the German team will develop – he said.

“Incompatible with Art”

– Today we hear from various German politicians announcing that they will defend the positions we already know. “On the other hand, I know from conversations with German colleagues that this issue is not as clearly perceived on the German scene as it would appear from an official position,” added the deputy head of the Foreign Ministry. As he emphasized, the Polish side had some arguments or means of pressure that could influence Germany’s position, but would not express them, because “it is incompatible with art”.

The deputy head of the Foreign Ministry added that he disagreed with comments appearing in the media that raising the issue of reparations eliminated the possibility of obtaining individual compensation or other forms of compensation from Germany. – My belief is quite the opposite: raising the question of reparations brings closer the possibility of individual compensation and, for example, the issue of restitution of the Polish Union in Germany – this is also an issue that is still on the agenda. Here we expect progress in relation to the increase in reparation cases – he said.

– I believe that it is in Germany’s interest today to show that there is no total passivity in this matter. We can see that there are a number of pitches where the German game has definitely been the game to look forward to in recent years. The signal that the waiting game is not an effective game will also help other things – adds Szymon Szynkowski vel Sęk.

When asked when the repairs issue could finally be resolved, he said that this is not a topic that should be discussed in the perspective of even a few years. He also reminded that it was never in reparations that the amount was paid all at once.

– Repairs are usually carried out in very large amounts, so that they are paid for years, even decades. We have no other hope. Our goal is not to have a severe impact on the German economy, but to spread it over time so that the economy can cope with this additional reparative burden, stressed the deputy head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

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