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Post by JustJohn or JJ on Nov 4, 2017 11:56:48 GMT -7
Poland demands explanations over German minister’s words
04.11.2017 14:45 Officials in Warsaw have demanded explanations after the German defence minister suggested it was necessary to support the "resistance of the young generation" in Poland.  German Defence Minister Ursula von der Leyen (centre). Photo: EPA/OMER MESSINGER The Polish defence minister has issued instructions to summon the German defence attaché in Warsaw over the statement, and Poland’s foreign minister described the remark as an unacceptable attempt by a German politician to meddle in Poland's internal affairs. "On November 3, Defence Minister Antoni Macierewicz, in response to a statement by German Defence Minister Ursula von der Leyen, instructed Col. Tomasz Kowalik, Director of the [Polish defence ministry’s] Department of Military Foreign Affairs, to summon the German Defence Attache for explanations," the Polish defence ministry said in a statement. Speaking to German broadcaster ZDF, von der Leyen on Thursday said her children had been studying in Poland as part of the European Union’s Erasmus student exchange programme at a time when there was a power shift in Warsaw. She added that it was important to support the "healthy, democratic resistance of the young generation" in Poland. "Our task is to maintain the discourse, to argue with Poland and Hungary," von der Leyen also said, as quoted by Poland’s PAP state news agency. Referring to von der Leyen’s words, Polish Foreign Minister Witold Waszczykowski said her statement was a case of explicitly “admitting that the German side is interfering in political life in Poland." Waszczykowski added: “For the last two years we have been hearing from German politicians that they are neutral and that whatever is being said in the local [German] media is just independent publications that the German authorities have no influence on." Waszczykowski also said he would make efforts -- "in a gentle way, because we remain neighbours and friends” -- to ensure German officials “explain why such unacceptable words are spoken publicly." "We hope it's just a slip of the tongue that can happen to a politician,” he said, as quoted by the wPolityce news service. “We will give [the German defence minister] a chance to take these words back without creating some kind of diplomatic incident.”
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Post by karl on Nov 4, 2017 14:21:35 GMT -7
Yes, in the matter of foreign affairs, one needs be careful and exact in what is said, and with this, how it is said. For there is little latitude for mistakes.
Karl
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Post by pieter on Nov 4, 2017 15:00:14 GMT -7
John, Karl, Jaga, Kaima, Jeanne, Ludwik, Eric,
Governments of European countries should not support opposition movements of other European democracies. Governments, Prime Ministers, ministers of foreign affairs and Defence Ministers can be critical of other governments if treaties, mutual agreements, European rules, and for instance minority rights are violated. I know that the EU and certain European governments are critical about the political course Poland is following, and about the reforms in the Polish legal system, because they fear that one of the main pillars of a democracy 'The Separation of Powers' (Trias Politica) is violated and undermined by the present Polish administration. Europeans fear that the democratic mechanism of 'Checks and Balances' is taken away due to the growing state control.
Defence Minister Minister Ursula von der Leyen was not smart by stating it is important to support the "healthy, democratic resistance of the young generation" in Poland. Indeed it is the task of Germany and the EU (Berlin and Brussels) to maintain the discourse, to argue with Poland and Hungary, because these two countries are crossing European lines. But one state can't support one side (the opposition) in another state. Because in the German-Polish diplomatic relation, Germany has to think about the whole Polish nation. Wether we privately agree or disagree with von der Leyen doesn't matter. Her remarks weren's smart, weren't politically cleaver, and did not help the Polish opposition either. It only strengthened the image of the large German neighbour who is messing with Polish affairs,
Cheers,
Pieter
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Post by Jaga on Nov 4, 2017 20:50:05 GMT -7
I agree with Karl, one has to be careful with the words. Poland also demanded Germany to pay reparations from Germany, for WW II again... so I guess, Polish nationalistic government is extra careful, sensitive and not friendly towards anything Germany does and is related to Poland.
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Post by karl on Nov 5, 2017 8:49:29 GMT -7
I agree with Karl, one has to be careful with the words. Poland also demanded Germany to pay reparations from Germany, for WW II again... so I guess, Polish nationalistic government is extra careful, sensitive and not friendly towards anything Germany does and is related to Poland. Jaga I think you have excellent fore sight in such matters as this displays. For at present and perhaps to the fore seeable future there is political tension between Poland and Germany. It is not the people, it is the respective goverments. Karl |
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