The need for Germany to respond to the request of the Greek Parliament for the German compensations, point out the German commentators with their articles in the newspapers Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (FAZ), Suddeutsche Zeitung (SZ) and New Germany (ND).
FAZ reports that "there are Germans who are unaware of the extent to which the memory of the crimes of the National Socialists / Nazi occupiers still exists in some European countries."
He emphasizes that "Greece needed more time than others to recover from the 'German kingdom of terror'. It was therefore a miracle the friendly attitude (s.s. of the Greeks) towards Germany, which was soon taken for granted. However, it was not linked to the forgetfulness of those events that almost every family in Greece can tell.
Of course, the Greeks themselves know that the latest claim for compensation is not realistic. A bad piece of advice, however, would be to wipe out the verbal communication to the German government with the arrogance of the powerful completely off the table.
In the elaboration of our past for the Third Reich belong precisely the effort of reconciliation and closer cooperation. Because in the Greek Parliament, all parties support the demand for compensation. They are rejected only by the fascist 'Golden Dawn'. "With it, Democrats should have nothing in common."
SZ: Helping Greece is more important than time-consuming lawsuits
Η SZ points out that in a few weeks it will be 75 years since the Distomo massacre, describing what happened and how the victims' descendants brought the case to the highest courts of Europe losing the trials. He emphasizes that "the long series of trials has resulted in the issue of the horrific Nazi occupation of Greece in World War II, of which Distomo is a landmark and has become the consciousness of a wider public in Germany.
And the claims for compensation that the Greek government is now raising are likely to end up in the highest courts. It will take years for decisions to be made and whether there will be some kind of legal peace is open. It would be better to use time for a reciprocal political approach.
"Talk to the Greeks!", Writes Neues Deutschland
For example, Berlin could allocate more than € 1 million a year to the Funds set up for joint memory conservation projects. What Greece needs today more than anything else is investment. Forcing German companies to do so is not possible, but they can be encouraged. "Berlin and Athens could work together on this issue" amicably "and" on equal terms ", as Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras now wants - that is, actions instead of lawsuits."
ND: The issue of compensation is not closed
"The issue of reparations for the Nazi era is not closed. "The Germans should respond to the request of the Greek Parliament and negotiate with Greece on this issue," writes the ND. Regarding the question why compensations are currently being discussed again in Greece, he states that "this is related to the dominant role played by Germany in the European Union.
In particular, the German government, together with the Troika, which consisted of the European Commission, the European Central Bank and the International Monetary Fund, pushed the government of Athens to pursue a strict austerity policy, in order for the heavily indebted southern European country to receive loans in return. This included cuts in pensions and salaries. An independent policy was no longer possible for Greece.
"Although the country has long since moved out of the so-called EU bailout, poverty remains high. In addition, lenders have benefited from their "help" for Greece. Germany earned billions in interest.
"It is understandable that many Greeks feel treated with disrespect. When the country faced the specter of bankruptcy, no one thought in German public life that they should treat their European partner differently, because the assassins of the Nazi Reich were responsible for the death of hundreds of thousands of Greeks, the almost complete extermination of the Jews. the looting of the economy and the widespread destruction of infrastructure. In countries where the Germans have committed such crimes a few decades ago, restraint is appropriate.
Instead, many German media and politicians, such as Chancellor Angela Merkel and then-Finance Minister Wolfgang Schieble, showed a shameful arrogance in those days of the Greek financial crisis. "Hopefully one day they will get the bill."
- Source: ΑΠΕ-ΜΠΕ.