Are Germany Sending Thousands of Migrants to Poland? Press Reports on "Law and Justice Lies"

Viktoria Grossmann, a correspondent for the German daily "Sueddeutsche Zeitung," notes in a commentary for the magazine that "precisely today, when Poland and Germany should be working closely together, relations between them are in crisis." "In 2023, the federal government had placed great hopes in the new government in Warsaw. Not much of that has remained – but that's not the fault of just one side," we read.

"SZ" emphasizes that after the change of government in Poland, there were hopes for an improvement in relations, which had been strained for years by the Law and Justice party. Jarosław Kaczyński's party was accused of "a perpetual anti-European attitude towards everything, especially Brussels, but also Berlin." The Warsaw correspondent mentions the elimination of the position of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' plenipotentiary for Polish-German social and cross-border cooperation. It emphasizes that this was explained by a laconic statement about "process optimization."

German newspaper surprised by Sikorski's decision. Important context missing.

Professor Krzysztof Ruchniewicz was reportedly dismissed due to the government's downsizing as part of the reconstruction. Earlier, his words about the need to return cultural property to Germany from World War II had received widespread attention, a point the Sueddeutsche Zeitung fails to mention. Grossmann, however, states that the German government's plenipotentiary for cooperation with Poland, Knut Abraham, currently has no direct partner for negotiations. This was similar during the Law and Justice party's rule.

The German daily wonders whether "Donald Tusk's government has bowed to the Law and Justice party (PiS), which once again sees the West as Poland's main enemy and is participating in spreading the lie that Germany is sending thousands of refugees to our country, just as Belarus is actually doing in the East." On the other hand, "SZ" reports that perhaps the issue of good relations with Germany "does not bring the government any political benefits."

German Journal on War Reparations for Poland: "Germany Still Doesn't Understand"

The Warsaw correspondent also accuses Berlin of "being more proactive." Grossmann notes that Tusk's government is not demanding reparations, but "Germany has not yet fully understood the suffering of Poles during World War II and has not adequately compensated them, which is a common view in Polish society." This attitude is maintained by Berlin "with its persistent passivity, which can also be interpreted as arrogance."

The German daily notes that the local government can no longer use the excuse of a lack of cooperation, as was the case under the Law and Justice party. At the same time, the Sueddeutsche Zeitung admits that there's no point in Friedrich Merz visiting Warsaw, given the ongoing border controls. The Warsaw correspondent assessed that Poland "is protesting strongly against them, so it's about more than just commuters tired of traffic jams."

German Journal on Relations with Poland. World War II and the Partitions.

According to Grossmann, this may be tiring for some, but it's still about World War II, and even the partitions of Poland, because in our country, "history and memory are of paramount importance." "There are many things that continue to fuel feelings of inferiority and injustice to this day," we read. "SZ" concludes that "no matter what the German government does, there will always be someone in Poland who will criticize it, judging these actions as too late or too insufficient."

"SZ" argues that "this cannot be an excuse for doing nothing." Grossmann advises that "providing financial aid for the still-living Polish victims of Nazism would be a good start." The Warsaw correspondent concludes that each side must resolve its own issues to gain trust. Warsaw is instrumentalizing or distorting history, as manifested in anti-German slogans, and Berlin is insensitive and attentive to the ignorance of Poland and Nazi crimes.

Read also: German newspaper on Waldemar Żurek. "He was a thorn in the side of PiS." Read also: Anti-migration marches. German media criticize organizers and participants.