Political relations between Germany and Poland are the worst since 1989, and “the responsibility for this lies solely with the national conservatives in power in Warsaw”, writes Reinhard Veser, the newspaper’s commentator, in the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (FAZ) .

“They spread a caricature of Germany based on lies, half-truths and hatred: Berlin wants to create a ‘Fourth Reich’ on the foundations of the EU and resubmit Poland. Some members of the government maintain a substantial and diplomatic tone towards Germany as an ally of the EU and NATO. But the weight of moderate voices decreases, while at the same time the rhetorical resistance of dogmatists disappears “- says the author of the comment published on Thursday (10/27/2022).

According to him, the reasons are to be found in Polish internal politics. As he writes, it will be difficult for the PiS party to win the elections again next year. “The Polish right has always been keen to stoke anti-German sentiment in election campaigns, as it is endorsed by part of society due to the crimes committed by the Germans during World War II. Now the PiS is hitting even higher tones than before, because during the current crisis it is unable to implement the promised social programs through its own fault,” writes Veser.

A response to the alleged Berlin intrigues

He reminds that due to the rule of law dispute with the European Commission, the Polish government is unlikely to get 36 billion euros from the EU reconstruction fund after the pandemic. The PiS is trying to “sell the consequences of its own attitude to the public as a German intrigue”, claiming that “on orders from Berlin, the German President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, refuses Poland to pay money in order to force submission to Germany.”

“The fact that claims for reparations for the devastation of World War II are now being put on the table is a response to these alleged intrigues. Officially, this is historical justice, but there is a current message: this relentless government is able to obtain a multiple of the EU money, the payment of which is withheld from Poland,” writes the journalist. German.

And he assesses: “With the PiS government, we cannot hope for constructive and forward-looking relations. Success should be seen as success when meaningful working relations between Berlin and Warsaw are maintained”.

In the opinion of “FAZ”, Warsaw is intensifying the Polish-German conflict against its own raison d’etat. In such a situation, Germany’s priority should be to defend the unity of the West in the face of Russian aggression against Ukraine.

Asymmetric relationships

The newspaper’s commentator stresses that it is also important not to equate the political relations of the two countries with the whole of Polish-German relations. “For the German economy, Poland has long been more important than Russia, the number of people-to-people contacts is important. Above all, however, the behavior of the government in Warsaw should not hide the fact that there are deeper problems in Polish-German relations for which the Polish side is not responsible,” underlines Reinhard Veser.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki

As he adds, the relations of the two countries are “asymmetrical”. “Given the history in which German leaders in the 18th and 19th centuries first wanted to destroy Poland as a state and then in the 20th century with genocidal energy as a nation, relations with the “Germany have existential significance for Poles. In turn, for most Germans, Poland is one of many neighbors – and one that is less known than those to the west. Even Germans interested in the history often don’t realize how brutal the German occupiers in Poland were during World War 2. It shows, and is one of the reasons why most Poles approve of demands for reparations, although according to polls, only a few expect that money will actually be paid in. It’s a matter of recognition,” writes the “FAZ” journalist.

condescending Germans

According to him, “the condescending behavior of the Germans towards the Poles is not yet a thing of the past”. Veser recalls that for many years the Germans did not take Polish warnings against an aggressive Russia seriously and refused to discuss Nord Stream 2 in any substantial way. A sensible reaction to the Russian attack on Ukraine” , she notes.

“If the damage caused by the PiS government in Polish-German relations is to be repaired one day, there needs to be more openness, respect and understanding for its eastern neighbors from Germany,” concludes the journalist “FAZ”.