How much did we pay Germany via The Marshall Plan after the war?
Kept us from fighting them again and from them joining with the Soviets to swallow Europe.
The answer is we still pay today. Who do you think pays for all the military protection of Europe?
About 1.5 billion USD 1950; would guess around 10x inflation since then so about 11.5 billion.
The 115M DM they paid Greece in 1960 was a joke in comparison. But the dominant theory of the time was that high reparations would only open up old wounds.
Maybe modern Germans don’t feel responsible for the war and its damage. I know many who feel that way - “we weren’t here!”. But their modern success is due in no small part to the enlightened attitude of the Americans who used to run the United States - and who not only stopped German aggression but reconstructed Europe afterwards and shaped what would become the European Economic Community.
The Germans may laugh at Greece and point out that their problems are self made, but considering what happened, it ain’t so funny.
And I could make the same comment about the former Soviet Union and what THEY did to Eastern Europe, but about the only thing they have to give is oil and gas. And they don’t think they did anything bad in Eastern Europe....