Posted on 06/24/2007 4:47:14 AM PDT by Lukasz
(BERLIN) - The German press on Sunday slammed Poland and Britain for putting obstacles on the road to the deal reached on guidelines for a new European Union treaty at the bloc's summit this week.
Bild, the country's top selling newspaper, reserved its harshest criticism for neighbouring Poland, calling the Kaczynski twins who hold the posts of Polish president and prime minister "poison dwarves".
"It would have been better if this summit had failed," the newspaper said in an editorial, adding that the bitter dispute over Poland's voting rights has shown that there is little hope for unity in the EU.
"That would have prevented the creation of a Europe of two speeds and two classes. The sickening double game played by the Polish brothers Kaczynski should make it clear to any fan of Europe that this is now inevitable."
Relations between Poland and Germany have never been warm since World War II and took another beating when Warsaw threatened to veto a deal on a new treaty over the voting rights issue.
Before the summit began, the deeply conservative Polish President Lech Kaczynski and his twin Prime Minister Jaroslaw Kaczynski evoked Poland's destruction at the hands of Nazi Germany as a reason why its population, and therefore its voting power, was so low.
In the end, Poland won a considerable concession on the voting issue in Brussels, persuading the bloc's other 26 members to delay the full introduction of the new system until 2017.
"Warsaw is on board. But the treaty should not yet be considered saved," Der Tagesspiegel newspaper said.
It warned that the upcoming intergovernmental conference to finalize drafting the treaty and the ratification process present "the next obstacles."
The Berliner Morgenpost agreed, saying that "disaster has been averted, for now."
"It is annoying to see to what extent the nationalistic, egotistical blocking tactics of Poland and Britain paid off," it added.
The newspaper said it feared that a dangerous precedent has been set whereby nations who threaten to block progress within the European Union will be given concessions in return for their cooperation.
"After a success like the one claimed by Poland, there is a danger that this tactic will become common currency."
Welt am Sonntag described the haggling that preceded the deal as "torture" and said despite its eventual success the summit will be remembered mostly for Britain and Poland's "egotistical" behaviour.
It predicted that relations between Berlin and Warsaw were heading for an "icy spell".
"Poland has failed to understand that the point of the European Union is to bury the hatred we inherited," the newspaper commented.
Re: the twins bomb throwing statement that Polands present population vis a vis Germany’s was much reduced due to WWII. They should have done their homework. Polands present population is 40% higher than it was in the 1920’s. Germany has added 30%.
Ambassador in Moscow Averell Harriman letter to Roosevelt (my translation)
I plan on the next occasion without witnesses to tell Molotov that for sure you dont wish to mention your name as the one who discussed border issues.
US Department of State, FRUS, tome III 1944, page 1323
Whole story is precisely described in following book:
A Question of Honor by American authors Lynne Olson and Stanley Cloud
You might find interesting also following book:
I Saw Poland Betrayed: an American Ambassador Reports to the American People by former US ambassador in Poland Arthur Bliss Lane
Also I did not write that US had obligation to defend Poland. The US had not any right to recognize illegal government and ignore legal one. Most of Central European countries sided with axis, so one could say cynically that they deserved. Polish case what completely different.
This is really not so hard to understand, try again.
BTW - a few years ago there was a contest to redesign the Austrian eagle that can be found on the flag of Austria. It is a two-headed eagle that breaks the shackle of nazism (BuHuHaHa! Extremely ironic since in Austria you can find for sure the highest density of old nazis on this planet). The Austrian gouvernment stopped this contest immediately since most redesigns showed a two-headed roasted chicken breaking the shackle of nazism. If I think about the funny twins in Warsaw it could turn out as a tragedy if our cartoonist also get a grip on this issue and on the Polish eagle.
Bitte?
Interestingly I found out that those extreme flag-flying nationalists are usually the first ones to arrange themselves with somthing new, if they see a personal need to change the lines. While most of the silent ones would fight to their last drop of blood to defend their own idea of their nation, those who are addicted to profile themselves through overstated gestures simply swap the flags quietly.
I never said that the Poles (as a nation) would do so. Nevertheless I am sure that most of your politicians (including those who join this funny demonstration of nationalism in your country) would wave any flag if it would be suitable to their personal career.
Just take your heroic leaders. If they do not want any change of the current state of Poland they are free to leave the European union. We all know that they would love to do so, but without the alms of greater Europe their economy will not work anymore. Poland needs espechially Germany and its large markets to be sucessfull in the long term. Therefore the funny twins prostitute themselves to sign treaties they dismiss, just because their voters would kill them in case of a refusal. Prosperity and wealth seem to be more important than national pride in contemporary political Poland.
This big national hullabaloo is not very impressive from the outside. It might be suitable as a cheap propaganda show to dazzle some idiots in Poland but in real life it are not the flags that count. Personally I think it would be better for the Polish leadership not to fall into political prostitution and to leave a club they do not want to be in. It might be not better for the Polish people (who need the advantages of the EU badly), but it would be honest.
Think about it.
It was the free decision of the Spainards to leave Iraq behind.
Good to know. BTW, why did Chirac not negotiate the European Constitution in the December 2003 summit? What was he awaiting?
I do not like Chirac, but sucessfull politics means taking the chances. During the reign of Aznar if would have been a waste of time to find intelligent solutions for Europe. After he was toasted Chirac simply took his chance. Such is life and you have my compassion.
You are admitting Al Qaeda wasn't behind 3/11.
Nope. It is you who believes into conspiracy theories. I never did.
I am pro-Justice, I am pro-Life, I am pro-Freedom, I am pro-Truth.
Hehe! We share something.
ETA is based in France. To kill Spaniards ETA uses French dynamite. ETA resuplies through Europe. No foreign Secret Services are needed to carry out the job. ETA is there for such tasks.
The secret of such terror organisations like ETA is their conspirative occurrence. They are everwhere and nowhere. French dynamite? So what? As far as I know they simply robbed some French quarries for explosives. They could have done that in Germany, Switzerland, the US or everywhere else too. It is indeed the case that the pressure of persecution in Spain is higher than in other countries since there those guys are known well. This is the reason why they sidestep into France or other European countries.
My Godness! Let people free and let them pursuit their own interests.
We do. If you want then you are free to leave the European Union. The new treaty gives your country the right to do so. A short bye-bye will be enough.
Your personal problem might be that most of your compatriots do not share your version of Spain. That is the crux with a free democratic system. It is nothing new that Aznar (although you are obviously no supporter of him) i.e. was a member of Franco's Falange and therefore is not used to the free will of his people. Maybe you have some analogy with him concerning the issue of freedom.
Nevertheless you should wash your mouth out. To suggest that France is the initiator of the bombings in Madrid (through ETA or whatever) is impertinent. Espechially if you do not have any proof for that statement. Chirac was no friend of Aznar, but that is no reason to kill roundabout 200 innocent people. Shame on you!
Then do us the favor to leave the EU immediately since sooner or later the background of your flag indeed is going to get white since it will be impossible for you in the long term to hold your "importance" in this club. Further dependency is in a linear function of subordination into greater Europe. Since the European national states (that includes Germany) will fade away slowly within the next decades it is unavoidable that Poland shares this fate if it holds on to its membership. For changing the course within the EU you guys are simply too weak (this will not change with sqare roots or whatever).
Therefore: Leave as soon as possible. It will be better to live in a good neighbourhood without false alliances or those boring political correct lip services about friendship.
P.S.
How can it be then that the German gouvernment thinks that it needs some (idiotic-BTW) laws to keep young Poles out of our country? The flow of immigration is going west not east. Somehow nobody from the west wants to enter (this is really sad) your holy Polish civilization. The truth is that young Germans absolutely do not care about their neighbour while young Poles see their future in the west. It is a voting by the feet.
I understand that you loose yourself in wishful thinking about your nation, but you are well advised to meet the reality soon.
Everything is already decided, how do you feel in position of useful idiot? No offence intended.
But not surprising...
“Border issues were decided already in Teheran 1943”
As I said, waging war on the Soviets to drive them out of Eastern Europe was never an obligation, so no betrayal could have occured.
“The US had not any right to recognize illegal government and ignore legal one.”
I’m not sure what you mean by an ‘illegal government’. If you mean a non-elected government, then the idea that the U.S. has no right to recognize a non-elected government is incorrect. As a sovereign nation, the U.S. can recognize any government it wishes. What authority are you referring to when you say the U.S. has no right to recognize non-democratic governments? And how would the U.S. be able to win the cold war against the Soveit Union without recognizing, and working with, the non-democratic adversaries of the Soviet Union? Taking away this right would be a direct violation of U.S. soverienty and act as an impediment to U.S. interests abroad.
I understand that you would wish to erase Polish question from the WWII history but it happened and you must deal with it. Once again I repeat that nobody expected war against Soviet Union and this was still a betrayal. Of course you could recognize Soviet installed government for your own but later you should bear consequences of such decision. This is not big price for you I suppose just spoil the image a bit among those few people interested in this issue.
“I understand that you would wish to erase Polish question from the WWII history but it happened and you must deal with it. “
No, if this were true I’d be claiming that Poland had a free and fair government under Soviet occupation. I’m not denying that Poland lived under Soviet tyranny. I am contesting the insinuation that anything short of freeing Poland from Soviet occupation during WWII was a betrayal by the U.S. The concept sets an unattainable timeline for winning Poland’s freedom.
“and you must deal with it.”
We did. The U.S. defeated the Soviet Union in the Cold War and Poland is now free. Our only problem now in Europe lies with Germany. We need to pressure this worthless welfare state to implement viable sanctions against Iran. As Iran’s largest European trading partner, Germany holds all the cards. And they appearntly have no interest in implementing meaningful sanctions agains the terrorist state. They even opposed issuing a statement condeming the terrorist abduction of the British sailors in Iraq. Our ideological foe is Germany, as this state opposes the spread of freedom abroad (remember their staunch opposition to the removal of Saddam’s government).
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.