Germany rejects Poland's claim for Second World War compensation

Poland officially renounced any claim by signing an accord in 1953, says the German government

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock had rejected the demand during a visit to Warsaw in October, saying the issue was, for Berlin, a closed chapter. Reuters

Germany formally rejected a Second World War reparations claim from Poland on Tuesday, estimated at €1.3 trillion ($1.4 trillion), the Polish foreign ministry said.

Poland's governing Law and Justice party has championed the issue and evoked Germany's “moral duty” since coming to power in 2015.

Last September, Poland estimated the financial cost of Second World War losses to be €1.3 trillion and sent a formal diplomatic note to Berlin demanding compensation.

Berlin has repeatedly rejected the claims, saying Poland officially renounced such demands in a 1953 accord.

“According to the German government, the issue of reparations and compensation for wartime losses remains closed and it does not intend to enter into negotiations,” the Polish foreign ministry said in a statement.

The German foreign ministry confirmed that it had “responded to a verbal note from Poland dated October 3" but did not give any details.

Last survivors of Second World War — in pictures

A British veteran during an armed forces and veterans' parade to mark the 70th anniversary of VE Day in central London on May 10, 2015. AFP

Second World War veterans commemorate the 70th anniversary of Victory in Europe in Washington, DC in 2015. AFP

Veterans gather to watch a military parade to mark the 75th anniversary of the Soviet Union's victory over Nazi Germany in Minsk on May 9, 2020. Russia and its former republics are estimated to be home 100,000 surviving veterans because of the very young age at which soldiers were conscripted. AFP

A veteran during an armed forces and veterans' parade to mark the 70th anniversary of VE Day on May 10, 2015. AFP

A Royal Navy war veteran at an armed forces and veterans' parade on May 10, 2015. AFP

French President Jacques Chirac greets veterans in Paris in May 2001, when hundreds of thousands of troops were still alive. AFP

A Second World War veteran at the National Mall in Washington, DC, May 8, 2015. AFP

British veterans arrive at the war memorial in Caen, western France, May 8, 2008. AFP

Army Air Corps veteran Bernard Dupuis at the national Second World War memorial in 2015 in Washington DC. AFP

A veteran has his beret adjusted before the start of an armed forces parade in central London on May 10, 2015. AFP

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock had rejected the demand during a visit to Warsaw in October, saying the issue was, for Berlin, a closed chapter.

The Polish foreign ministry said meanwhile that it “will further continue to seek compensation for German aggression and occupation in 1939-1945".

Second World War Navy ship discovered — in pictures

Marine explorers who discovered the wreck of the Second World War American destroyer ‘USS Samuel B Roberts’ off the coast of the Philippines believe it is the deepest shipwreck yet located. All photos: AFP

Torpedo tubes on the wreck of the destroyer ‘USS Samuel B Roberts’. It sank in October 1944 off Samar Island during the Pacific War after engagements with an Imperial Japanese Navy flotilla during the Battle of Leyte Gulf.

The pilothouse of the wreck of the destroyer ‘USS Samuel B Roberts’, which sits nearly 6,900 metres deep and is a war grave to 90 sailors.

The ‘USS Samuel B Roberts’ provided protection for aircraft carriers at the Battle Of Samar. The destroyer sank after being holed by the Japanese battleship ‘Kongo’.

Also on Tuesday, Warsaw said it had called on the UN for support in its efforts to receive war reparations.

Polish conservatives argue their country was forced to sign the 1953 accord by the Soviet Union.