Poland Demands $1.26 Trillion in Reparations From Germany for WWII

Poland’s foreign minister has signed a diplomatic note requesting that Germany pay the equivalent of $1.26 trillion in reparations for damage incurred by Poland during the Nazi German invasion that set off World War II.

The $1.26 trillion amount was calculated from an extensive government report on lasting damages from the war, released on the 83rd anniversary of Germany’s Sept. 1 invasion of Poland last month. Poland’s Communist government had previously waived all further claims to compensation for WWII in 1953 under pressure from the Soviet Union, but the ruling Law and Justice Party (PiS) rejects this as invalid, according to Al Jazeera. PiS has taken up the cause of World War II reparations since its ascension to power in 2015, using German aggression in World War II as a central part of its nationalism.

THE TOPICALITY OF WWII HISTORY

“[The note] expresses the position of the Polish minister of foreign affairs that the parties should take immediate steps to permanently and effectively … settle the issue of the consequences of aggression and German occupation,” Foreign Minister Zbigniew Rau said of the matter, adding that it will be one of the foremost points of discussion during German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock’s visit to Warsaw on Tuesday.

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Germany rejects all Polish claims for reparations, saying the matter has already been settled. It further points to the vast tracks of land Poland took from prewar Germany, given by Joseph Stalin when he redrew the postwar map of eastern Europe, as fitting compensation.

The Polish government believes the severity of damages from World War II means that further, direct payments are needed in compensation. Six million Poles are estimated to have died during the war.