Poland demands reparation payments from Germany relating to World War II

Poland has suggested that the damage caused by the Nazis’ World War II invasion and occupation of their country is in the region of €1.3 trillion

Jaroslaw Kaczynski, leader of the national conservative ruling party PiS, confirmed the news according to tagesschau on Thursday, September 1. 

Jaroslaw Kaczynski was speaking shortly ahead of the release of the long-awaited report on the cost to the country of years of Nazi German occupation as it marks 83 years since the start of World War II.

However, Kacynski confirmed that there is a “long and difficult” process to go through before Poland receives reparations.

A team of some 30 economists, historians and other experts have worked on the report since 2017 but the issue has created bilateral tensions.

The war was “one of the most terrible tragedies in our history,” President Andrzej Duda said during early morning observances at the Westerplatte peninsula near Gdansk, one of the first places to be attacked in the Nazi invasion.

The president added: “Not only because it took our freedom, not only because it took our state from us, but also because this war meant millions of victims among Poland’s citizens and irreparable losses to our homeland and our nation.”

The German government have since rejected the reparations claims.

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