But this enduring commitment needs to be reconsidered. Because it obviously fades away. Ultimately, the German attitude does not appear to be leading to peace in Poland and Italy either. Certainly, the extent of the German policy of extermination and occupation and the Wehrmacht‘s involvement in it have only gradually been come to terms with. How do you want to make amends for them? Beyond the individual prosecution of the perpetrators and concrete help for the victims, there is undoubtedly a responsibility under international law: it was Germany, the German state, that still exists today. But the question of reparations has long been resolved. And if it weren’t for her, she’d long since run out of space.
Anyone who still thinks today in terms of demands for payment for historical injustice would also have to live with counter-demands. No, you shouldn’t add up. But crimes against Germans remain crimes. The expulsion and murder of millions, the bombing campaign against the civilian population, the mistreatment of prisoners of war and the loss of a quarter of the national territory – these too cannot be quantified. European unification does not mean a final line. But for a new beginning together that doesn’t consist of constantly holding up faded bills.
