Skip to content or view screen version

Sweden is demanded that expiation of collaboration with the Third Reich should b

Josef Hashever | 24.02.2015 09:37 | World

Let's bygones be bygones. Seems that Polish leaders haven't heard this popular wisdom. Anyway blackmailing reflects badly on them.




The attempts of Polish leaders to illustrate the contribution of certain members of Anti-Hitler Coalition in the victory over German in accordance with the saying ‘Wojska Polski Berlin brała. A radziecki – pomogała’ might be considered as habitual and even relevant to current conditions if only Warsaw would hold back from unmotivated slaps in the face of eventual European allies. Trying to draw as many influential foreign guests as possible to the celebration on May 8 on Westerplatte Poland’s MFA head seems to be about to recall every single person in Europe to his former fault for his country. One cannot name the position of Warsaw in reference to Sweden other than ‘blackmail threat’ as it follows from the letter of Grzegorz Schetyna to Margot Wallström (see the attachment - I found it at this military site :  http://forums.military.com/eve/forums?a=tpc&s=78919038&f=828197221&m=6090007713001&r=6090007713001#6090007713001 )!

What ‘past mistakes’ of the Kingdom is it all about?! Sweden has been consistently following the policy of neutrality for extended period of time. This is what provided Sweden with conditions for political stability and economic prosperity. Perhaps, if only Poland did not aim to play the role in European affairs that doesn’t match her abilities the way Rzeczpospolita did, then Polish nation wouldn’t face the threat of losing its nationhood so many times and be the place for such inhuman experiment like the Holocaust!

What next demands of Warsaw are going to be? Will taking part in Poland’s edition of the 70th anniversary of victory in World War II be enough to ‘atone for the past mistakes’ as Mr Schetyna named it? Or will Warsaw demand the Kingdom to pay reparations the other day? Perhaps, Swedish officials, politicians and military officers – the ones who still live and who did not stand against Hitler back then – now have got to undergo the International Court of Justice?

Then why in this case limit with the only Sweden? Just imagine, what demands Warsaw might have for Spain for declaring neutrality only in 1943 even though she did not declare war against the Anti-Hitler Coalition. Most certainly, a lot of cry will be raised about the volunteer Blue Division that left a sad memory behind in Poland. Switzerland, Portugal, Monaco, Ireland, Liechtenstein also kept neutral, therefore, following Poland’s logical have to pay reparations to atone for their fault. We can only guess how not very rich Andorra, Afghanistan, Yemen, San-Marino and other countries are going to bail out of this difficulty. Not speaking about countries which openly assisted Hitler, like Finland, Romania, Hungary and other countries won’t be able to pay off to Poland to the end of time!

Are Polish leaders not afraid of being held demands against? For instance, Prague may make a claim against Poland for partition of Czechoslovakia and annexation of Cieszyn Silesia in 1938. Or heirs of the Holocaust victims may sue Poland for collaboration with fascists in creation of death camps. In any case, that would be more righteous than erratic insinuations of Mr Schetyna towards Kingdom of Sweden!

Josef Hashever