Today, the Head of the Foreign Ministry, Zbigniew Rau, initialled a diplomatic note on reparations, which will be forwarded to German diplomacy. “The settlement of the consequences of the German aggression and occupation should include, among other things, the payment of compensation by Germany for material and non-material damage caused to the Polish state,” Zbigniew Rau reported.
“The diplomatic note, which I have just initialled, will be forwarded to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Federal Republic of Germany. The note expresses the conviction that the parties should take immediate steps towards a permanent, comprehensive, final, legal and material settlement of the consequences of the German aggression and occupation in 1939-1945,” the minister said.
“This settlement should include: payment by the Federal Republic of Germany of compensation for the material and non-material damage caused to the Polish state by this aggression and occupation, compensation to the victims of this aggression and occupation and their family members for the damage and harm caused to them, a systemic solution to the issue of the seized Polish cultural property and archival records, return of the assets and liabilities of Polish state-owned banks plundered by the German state between 1939 and 1945, settlement of the claims arising from the robbery of Rzeszow’s credit unions, ensuring full rehabilitation of the murdered activists of the pre-war Polish minority of German origin and compensation for the losses suffered by the Polish diaspora organisations of German origin, a full and systemic regulation of the status of Poles and persons of Polish origin by restoring the status of a national minority, in accordance with the position of the Polish side to date, above all concerning the issue of teaching the mother tongue, ensuring proper cooperation in the commemoration of the Polish victims of the Second World War, and taking effective measures by the German authorities to present to their own society a true picture of the war and its consequences – especially the harm and damage caused to Poland and the Poles,” Minister Rau has stressed.
“Such a settlement will make it possible to base Polish-German relations on justice and truth and will lead to the closing of painful chapters of the past and ensure the further development of bilateral relations in a spirit of good neighbourliness and friendly cooperation,” Zbigniew Rau said.
“I would like to take this opportunity to express my gratitude and appreciation to the parliamentary team and group of experts led by Arkadiusz Mularczyk, work that has lasted more than five years, work for the fruits of which generations of Poles have been waiting since the war,” the minister stressed.
Rau also expressed his gratitude to Deputy Foreign Minister Piotr Wawrzyk, Secretary of State at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, for his “efficient coordination of the work leading up to the presentation of the diplomatic note” to Germany.