Tuesday, September 16, is a demanding day for President Karol Nawrocki. Poland’s head of state has already accustomed the public to an active international agenda, with recent visits to the United States, Italy, the Vatican, Lithuania, and Finland. Yet the upcoming day promises to be a true diplomatic marathon, with meetings scheduled in Berlin and Paris – the two most influential capitals of the European Union.
Chancellor Friedrich Merz and President Emmanuel Macron should not expect their discussions with Nawrocki to resemble the conciliatory style of relations once led by Donald Tusk. The Polish president, commentators note, will neither accept a subordinate role nor quietly endorse agreements made in Berlin or Paris without asserting Poland’s own demands.
Reparations on the Agenda
Presidential spokesperson Rafał Leśkiewicz announced earlier this week that Nawrocki intends to raise the issue of war reparations during his meeting with German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier in Berlin. According to Leśkiewicz, the Polish head of state will press for the restitution of cultural property and financial compensation for wartime damages.
Asked in the PAP Studio (Polish Press Agency) whether Nawrocki would indeed insist on reparations, Leśkiewicz affirmed: “The president will certainly address this matter. Acting in the interests of Poland and its citizens, he will demand reparations.” He emphasised that dismissing the issue, as previous governments had done, was unacceptable.
Leśkiewicz added that Germany owes Poland compensation for war damages estimated at more than 6 trillion złoty (over €1.3 trillion), and that raising this demand consistently in the international arena is in itself a concrete and necessary step.
Strained Polish–German Relations
The subject of reparations, abandoned without protest by Tusk, as critics point out, is also expected to surface in Nawrocki’s talks with Chancellor Merz, who has openly expressed hostility toward Poland’s president and, by extension, toward Poland itself. Tensions were further heightened by remarks from Knut Abraham, Germany’s envoy for cooperation with Poland, who just a day before Nawrocki’s arrival in Berlin suggested that instead of reparations, Germany could offer Poland security guarantees.
Polish officials were quick to dismiss such proposals, citing historical examples where German “guarantees” had proven unreliable, both during the First Polish Republic and the Second Republic before World War II.
Official Schedule of the President’s Visit
Berlin – September 16
- 9:00 – Official welcoming ceremony with German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier (Bellevue Palace Courtyard)
- Signing of the guest book (Bellevue Palace Entrance Hall)
- 9:15 – Private meeting between Presidents Nawrocki and Steinmeier (Bellevue Palace, Cabinet)
- 9:30 – Plenary talks led by both presidents and their delegations (Bellevue Palace, Robert Blum Hall)
- 10:45 – Official welcome by Chancellor Friedrich Merz (Chancellery Courtyard)
- 10:50 – Private meeting with Chancellor Merz (Chancellery, Cabinet)
- 11:00 – Plenary session with Polish and German delegations (Chancellery, Conference Room)
Paris – September 16
- 15:55 – Official welcoming ceremony with French President Emmanuel Macron (Élysée Palace Courtyard)
- 16:00 – Plenary talks led by both presidents (Élysée Palace, Salon des Ambassadeurs)
- 16:50 – Private meeting between Presidents Nawrocki and Macron (Élysée Palace, Salon Pompadour)
- 17:30 – Meeting with Polish media representatives (Polish Embassy in Paris, Concert Hall)