Reconciliation with Poland (Germany)

German Embassy Washington D.C. ^ | May 5, 2005

[lizol]

Reconciliation with Poland

Germany is surrounded by friends and partners in today's European Union – an organization that has undergone a profound transformation over the past two decades, as it has gained competences and been enlarged to include 25 member states.

One successful example of European partnership is the so-called "Weimar Triangle". This initiative was launched through the joint declaration of 29 August 1991 by the Foreign Ministers of France, Poland and Germany in the Thuringian town that Goethe made his home. The Foreign Ministers concerned – Roland Dumas, Krzysztof Skubiszewski and Hans-Dietrich Genscher – agreed on comprehensive cooperation between their three countries in the political, cultural, educational and scientific fields.

German-Polish relations developed considerable political and economic momentum following German unification in 1990 and the dramatic transitions in central and eastern Europe. The German-Polish Treaty on Good-Neighbourliness, Friendship and Cooperation of 17 June 1991 ushered in a period of intensive and varied links.

Bilateral relations entered a new phase with Poland's accession to the European Union on 1 May 2004. Both Governments plan to build on Poland's accession to expand cooperation between the two countries on the political, economic and cultural levels. Cooperation between Poland and Germany is closer than ever before, now that both countries are members of NATO (since 1999) and the EU. It is becoming ever clearer to both sides that German and Polish interests coincide in numerous areas.

Relations can only be close and amicable if the past is dealt with in a responsible way. Germany's full and unconditional recognition of its guilt for the suffering of the Polish people during World War II, as symbolized by Willy Brandt's genuflection before the Memorial to the Heroes of the Warsaw Ghetto on 7 December 1970, is a major part of this. Willy Brandt's gesture paved the way for reconciliation between our two countries. It was made while he was in Warsaw to sign the Agreement between the Federal Republic of Germany and the Polish People's Republic concerning the Basis for Normalization of their Mutual Relations. The recognition of the Oder-Neisse border and the renunciation of all territorial claims against Poland were to bring a new dimension to bilateral relations. Inviting Gerhard Schröder to participate in the commemorative events marking the 60th anniversary of the Warsaw Uprising on 1 August 2004 underlined the importance and intensity of German-Polish relations.

Germany and Poland cooperate intensively in the political, economic and cultural fields. The largest number of Germany's town partnerships are now with municipalities in the neighbouring country to the east – numerous informal links and exchanges exist between German and Polish municipalities.

Between May 2005 and May 2006 Germany and Poland will be organizing a multitude of cultural and social events to raise their profile in the respective partner country. The 60th anniversary of the end of the war and the 15th anniversary of the German-Polish Treaty on Good-Neighbourliness thus both fall within the German-Polish Year 2005-2006.