Government consultations - Poland and Germany want to strengthen cooperation
Germany and Poland aim to establish their cooperation on a new foundation with an Action Plan. However, specific financial agreements regarding World War II reparations and military aid are not mentioned in the plan, as revealed in the document distributed by the German government.
Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) traveled to Warsaw with twelve Federal and State ministers for the German-Polish government consultations. This is the first time since November 2018 that this meeting has taken place again. In the past years, the national-conservative PiS government, which ruled Poland from 2015 to 2023, damaged the relationship with anti-German tones and reparations demands of 1.3 billion euros. Now, a new start is expected with the center-left government of Donald Tusk.
No concrete promises about payments
Tusk has emphasized in the past that he expects material and moral reparations from Germany for the damages of the Second World War. In the document now available, it says: "Both governments will conduct an intensive dialogue on measures to support the still living victims of the German attack and occupation in the years 1939-1945, commemoration, and security." No concrete promises about payments are made.
As another project in the service of reconciliation, the Action Plan mentions the construction of the German-Polish House in Berlin. The house should remind of the complicated German-Polish history and the brutal German occupation during the Second World War (1939-1945) and create a place of remembrance for the Polish victims. Both sides value a swift completion of this building, as stated in the document. In addition, both sides commit to using the German-Polish history textbook titled "Europe - our history" as teaching material.
A significant part of the 40-page Action Plan deals with the topic of defense. Poland, which is an EU and NATO member, is one of the most engaged political and military supporters of the attacked Ukraine. Moreover, the country, which borders not only Ukraine but also Belarus and the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad, has gained new significance as a front state. The document now states: "We will strengthen interoperability and standardization of our defense capabilities, increase production capacities, and foster investments in our defense industry."
Initiatives in the field of tanks and ammunition
Concerning tanks and ammunition, there are plans to develop joint initiatives. This also includes an increased availability of spare parts for Leopard combat tanks, which both countries have supplied to Ukraine.
Furthermore, Poland and Germany plan to align their efforts to create a stronger and more effective European pillar in NATO, which significantly contributes to the deterrence potential of the alliance, as stated further.
- Olaf Scholz, the Federal Chancellor of Germany from the SPD party, led a delegation of twelve Federal and State ministers to Warsaw for government consultations with the Polish leadership.
- The Polish government, led by Donald Tusk, is hoping for material and moral reparations from Germany for the damages of the Second World War.
- The Action Plan also mentions the construction of the German-Polish House in Berlin as a project aimed at reconciliation and remembrance of the complicated German-Polish history.
- Poland, as a member of both the EU and NATO, is one of the most engaged supporters of Ukraine and has gained new significance as a front state due to its borders with Ukraine, Belarus, and the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad.
- The German-Polish Action Plan includes initiatives to strengthen interoperability and standardization of defense capabilities, increase production capacities, and foster investments in defense industry.
- The document also mentions plans to develop joint initiatives for tanks and ammunition, including an increased availability of spare parts for Leopard combat tanks supplied to Ukraine by both countries.
- Poland and Germany aim to align their efforts to create a stronger and more effective European pillar in NATO, which significantly contributes to the deterrence potential of the alliance.
