Status: 12.03.2022 22:04
Criticisms combined with an explosive historical comparison: Polish PiS chief Kaczynski accused Germany of “dominance” in Europe. Berlin already tried this with military means, now it uses peaceful means.
The chairman of Poland’s ruling PiS party, Jaroslaw Kaczynski, has denounced German “domination” in Europe. Kaczynski said in a speech in southwestern Poland that Germany wants to use peaceful methods to carry out plans it previously wanted to implement with military means.
The strength is in the sovereign states
According to the Polish news agency PAP, Kaczynski also said that Europe’s strength lies in the strength of its sovereign states. The party leader condemned “the situation of domination, a situation in which one of the European states, today the largest after Russia, is carrying out plans with peaceful methods that it once wanted to carry out with military methods”.
This is a path that leads to crisis and misfortune – not only in Poland, but across Europe. “And also this country, Germany,” continued Kaczynski, considered the most important strategist of the right-wing populists in power.
Anti-German rhetoric in the election campaign
The head of PiS travels around the country on the eve of parliamentary elections scheduled for autumn 2023. According to the Polish opposition, the ruling party’s anti-German and Eurosceptic rhetoric is, at least in part, related to the election campaign.
Warsaw recently launched a diplomatic offensive to pay reparations for damage suffered in World War II. The government estimates the value of compensation at 1.3 trillion euros and is seeking early negotiations with the federal government. From the federal government’s point of view, however, there is no legal basis for Poland’s reparation claims.
Offer from Germany rejected
More recently, in late November, Warsaw rejected an offer by Germany to send the “Patriot” air defense system and German soldiers to Poland. The Polish Ministry of Defense suggested sending the equipment to Ukraine.