The Polish ambassador to Germany, Dariusz Pawłoś, gave a speech in Potsdam on Monday at the invitation of Ulrike Liedtke, president of the Landtag of Brandenburg. On the anniversary of the end of the war, Mr. about memorials in Brandenburg where Polish war victims are buried. Remembering them “is our moral duty” – emphasized the ambassador.
Speech by the ambassador in Potsdam
Speaking in Potsdam, the Polish diplomat thanked “for the exceptional approach to relations with Poland”.
It is also very nice that Brandenburg is a state with the most diverse offer of Polish language courses in all of Germany
he stressed.
Brandenburg is a federal state “where there are memorials to the victims of the Second World War that are important to Poland,” said the Polish ambassador in Potsdam. They include, for example, the Sachsenhausen Concentration Camp Memorial, Ravensbrück Concentration Camp, the Fürstenberg an der Havel Cemetery, the Seelower Hoehen Memorial, Lieberose Concentration Camp and the former POW camp of Grossbereen.
For us, these are places sanctified by the blood of Polish victims, which we want and must remember. It’s just our moral duty
he said.
He appealed this place “to our German partners for the highest degree of understanding and sensitivity to the Polish culture of remembrance”.
He stressed that “several intergenerational associations of victims are active in Poland. They were also present at the celebrations at Ravensbrück concentration camp this year. The misinterpretation of the symbols they brought with them and the resulting controversies created a lot of media attention in Poland, which was not good for Polish-German relations. We will clarify this issue with the relevant government agencies and memorials and I am deeply convinced that together we will find a solution.”
There is still no memorial for the Polish victims of the occupation
Pawłoś also referred to the planned memorial in the center of Berlin for Polish victims of the German occupation in World War II, i.e. a place of remembrance and meeting with Poles, as it was referred to in the resolution passed by the Bundestag in October 2020 .
We are following this project with great attention and unfortunately we have to note that there has been a delay in the current phase of implementation
noted the ambassador.
However, we hope that the monument to Polish victims will finally be erected in Berlin and that it will also make an important contribution to Polish-German reconciliation.
– added.
“Unfortunately, the end of the war left Poland with a bitter taste.
Ambassador Pawłoś reminded the Brandenburg parliament that Poland also suffered heavy material losses during World War II.
Unfortunately, the end of the war left Poland with a bitter taste. We did not regain freedom in 1945, but for the next 45 years we remained under the yoke of Soviet totalitarianism. Some wounds have not healed to this day
he said.
In this context I refer to the Polish claims for damages recently submitted by the Polish government
said the diplomat. He pointed out that “Poland had no legal or political means to settle this issue in the post-war period. Today we have a sense of injustice and being treated like a second class country. In this situation, we believe that a sincere Polish-German dialogue on this issue is necessary. Silence or ignoring the problem is certainly not a good solution. The Polish government is ready for such a dialogue and has repeatedly encouraged its German partners to follow this path,” the ambassador emphasized.
Today, on the day of commemorating the end of the Second World War, one would like to say that the war in Europe is now only history and a distant memory. However, Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine shows how fragile peace is in Europe. The 15th month of Russian aggression against Ukraine should therefore remind us of the value of peace, freedom and stability
- said the ambassador of the Republic of Poland in Berlin during his speech in the Landtag of Brandenburg.
kk/PAP
Source: wPolityce