Poland is still seeking compensation for victims of the German invasion in World War II, Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski said in Berlin on Friday.
After attending the opening of the new Polish Embassy in the German capital, Sikorski said Germany could express its “regret at the horrible events” of the Nazi occupation by focusing on three elements.
These include a “gesture towards still-living victims,” the creation of a remembrance monument in Berlin, and an “investment in common security,” he argued.
Relations between Berlin and Warsaw soured considerably over the issue of war compensation under the Polish government of the nationalist Law and Justice (PiS) party, which was in power between 2015 and 2023.
While ties have improved since Prime Minister Donald Tusk’s return to office, his centrist administration has continued to demand reparations from Germany.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz – who is expected to lose his position following elections on February 23 – said in July 2024 that Germany is “aware of the gravity of its guilt” and promised to provide an unspecified amount aid for surviving Polish victims of the occupation, then estimated at some 40,000.
Sikorski’s comments on Friday suggest the issue remains unresolved, as does the question of a “visible sign of Germany’s regret” in the shape of a planned memorial in Berlin.
The two governments agreed last summer to cooperate on the construction of a German-Polish House as a monument of remembrance and reconciliation.
Sikorski mentioned the site of the former Kroll Opera House, a building that served as the seat of the Nazi-era German parliament before it was destroyed during the war.
The location, in Berlin’s Tiergarten, was previously identified as suitable by a commission of experts, but it is unclear whether the project has progressed in recent months amid Germany’s political crisis.
The third element highlighted by Sikorski was collaboration on defence, given the risk posed by Russia.
“German ships and Polish ships, and German elements of infrastructure, are at risk in the Baltic. So we could do something in the Baltic together,” the 61-year-old said.
Sikorski also warned of the threat from “nuclear-tipped Russian missiles based in the Kaliningrad exclave.”
“We could do something in the area of missile defence,” Sikorski added. “I think it would be useful and welcome in both countries.”
