germans file ww2 claim against poland? for what?

Answer 1

A piece of land called 'The Danzig Corridor'

Answer 2

There is no easy answer to this question. But, there are facts:

1. Poland was attacked and defeated by Germany
2. Germans inflicted immense pain and suffering to the Polish nation, killing VERY many people and setting the country back for decades
3. The fact that Poland and Eastern Europe would become communist after the war was directly caused by the German attacks and the aftermath - i.e. the borders of Europe were re-drawn after WW II (Poland had previously defeated the Bolsheviks attempting to spread communism westwards).

So, because the borders were re-drawn, essentially under Soviet dictando (see conferences in Tehran, Yalta), Poland got "moved" - almost half of Poland was swallowed by and incorporated into the USSR (today this is Ukraine and Lithuania - notably Lwow (Lviv) and Wilno (Vilnius), both cities with strong Polish influences). As a result, Poland was awarded lands which had previously belonged to Germany, notably Lower Silesia (today's Wroclaw (Breslau) and what was known as Eastern Prussia (with the exclusion of Kaliningrad (Koenigsberg), which Stalin kept in the USSR).

This is where the problem stems from - Germans in these lands were, yes, forcibly expelled. However, it is also worth noting that Poles were also thrown out of lands in the East as well and many more were sent of to Sibera or relocated to places like Kazachstan. Had the Germans not invaded, raped, and pillaged - for no good reason other than "lebensraum" and hate - these lands might well have remained in Poland until this day.

Moreover it was never the wish of the Polish nation to take these lands, but having lost those in the East, it was definitely a take it or leave it scenario. Moreover it is important to note that it is not "Poland" that made refugees of the Germans, but the puppet government installed by Stalin and the Soviets - which was never elected by anybody (well, at least not honestly, they faked the elections).

Thus, to have any sort of claim against Poland as a nation for compensation (of lands lost by Germans expelled from lands awarded to Poland after the war) is in my opinion not only ridiculous but also audacious. It is worth noting, however, that this is not a "German" claim, nor is it a popular movement in Germany. It is not even popular amongst persons repatriated or removed (or their descendants).

So it is not Germany that has filed a claim against Poland, but a group of disgruntled persons who seem to forget history. This is unfortunately the most grave danger out of a situation like this - not that they may be awarded a few million euros (which in all likelihood will never happen), but that such a decision would skew the facts - who started the war, who committed the atrocities, who caused countless loss of life, irrevocable loss of culture, art, and who caused the wheels of progress to stop turning for the next 50 years.

We have worked very hard, both Poles and Germans, to create an environment currently that is booth friendly and cooperative. Initiatives such as these undermine everything, as they seek to readdress things which should be clear cut, and they breed fanaticism on both sides.

As a final note, as a response to such claims, Warsaw's municipal office has been calculating over the past couple of years the damages incurred to the city, 99% destroyed by the Germans (as a possibility for a counter-claim should this situation escalate). While I despise the current Polish government, this is generally an interesting idea. It is worth noting, that Warsaw was obliterated as a city not during regular warfare (of course it was damaged - but not destroyed). After the Warsaw rising of 1944, which was finally quelled with much effort by the Germans, Hitler decided to have it wiped off the map of Europe as a lasting punishment. And in a span of days a historic city was reduced to rubble.

I apologize for the rant and hope this helps - its just that this type of thinking obviously gets me agitated.

Answer 3

They want back territory that was taken from them at the end of world war 2. The German inhabitants were forcibly expelled.

Answer 4

I don't know the answer to your question but I think you could possibly be the most beautiful woman on Earth, Uhm I mean your smile makes my heart laugh. Oh God I'm such a dork!