"Mr President of the Hellenic Parliament, Dear Colleagues, first of all I would like to thank the Cross-Party Commission for the report it prepared, a coherent report that is fully reasoned and constitutes the roadmap for the establishment of a national strategy. I would like to thank all the representatives of the associations and the organisations that are here with us today from the martyred cities and villages, the people who have sought, for so many years, the debt that Germany owes Greece.But I would like to begin with something else. A day which is truly - based also on the reports of the Parliament's Commission - a day during which we must think about how it is that this national strategy will be realised, will be established, a day which tends to develop into an exchange of accusations of one party against the other, for what one did and the other failed to do.In order to clarify things a bit -since certain things were heard before, which are not valid - I would like to mention the following: “As early as March 2015, our Government has broached, at the most formal and highest level, the issue of reparations for the occupation loan, and generally of Germany’s debt to Greece. It was in March 2015 that the Prime Minister visited Chancellor Merkel in Berlin. I am referring to the joint Press Meeting at that time between the Prime Minister and the Chancellor.I would also like to remind that since 2016 - if I am not mistaken - the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, at the orders of then Minister Nikos Kotzias, designated the collection of all the archival material which exists in the historical archives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which amounts to quite a few pages - hundreds of pages I would say - which is due to be published shortly. But I would like to remind, in order to raise this issue to a high level, that during a visit of then Minister of Foreign Affairs Kotzias with his counterpart, then Minister of Foreign Affairs and currently the President of Germany, Mr Steinmeier, the issue was also raised. I shall not refer to the numerous statements by the President of the Republic, to the statements and interventions of the President of the Hellenic Parliament, but I will again remind that in January 2019, the Prime Minister again broached the issue during the Chancellor's official visit here, speaking indeed about the “inalienable claims of the Greek State” during the joint press meeting. I can also submit it here to Parliament.I do not wish to ask Mr Venizelos but, if it is valid, it would be good for us to know. It would be good for it to be submitted when, by the latter, a note verbale was issued in January 2015 to Germany. Because we have all the material in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs archives. If this exists, it is a trump card for our country. We are familiar with the one and only note verbale that was issued in 1995. So, we do not wish to get into such a dispute, because we would be able to say that for a number of years, nothing was done, or that the actions were minimal. We want, from this Podium of the Parliament, to proclaim in the most emphatic manner, that no Greek government has existed to date, if one were to exclude the dismal interlude of the military junta - to have renounced the claims of the Greek State. This must be heard by everybody.Secondly, whether at the low, medium, or high level, at times in a more decisive manner, and at other times more interspersed, Greek governments have sought this debt that the German State owes.What we ought to also add is that work has been done in recent years. And I shall refer to and highlight the work done by Mr Staikouras, which is apparent, I believe, also in the report of the Cross-Party Commission, as well as the work that has been done at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the great work that the Parliament did and is submitting this report to us. These is our strong leverage, which we must utilise, and not just barren disputes. But there is also another point which I would like to respond to, and it pertains to the Communist Party of Greece. I will not get into the dispute now with a thousand other individual issues. This is the first time, though, that we have another tool in our hands, as Greece, which we must utilise. For the first time on the part of Germany, there is an autonomous movement by German citizens, including prominent figures in German political, cultural and artistic life who are taking Greece's side. Is there value in this? There is great value in this, and if I have time, I will say a few things more. Is it important that a party such as Die Linke is staunchly in support of Greece’s claims? It is very important that there are others from other parties. Not systematically, but they do exist. And this is important for one reason. To date, officially, Germany insists that no issue exists. So, with the work we did today - and this is what we must concentrate on - we want first of all to persuade Germany also, as well as the European and international communities, that the issue does exist and that the issue remains open in all respects: ethical, political, legal. And I will describe how further on. Therefore, these are crucial issues which we must keep in mind, so that we do not lose ourselves in things that are not important.What is the German debt? You will permit me to very briefly mention this, so that the issue is clear. It is one of our great arguments now that we also have all the sums, thanks to the Cross-Party Commission’s report. First, the occupation loan. A forced loan, a coercive loan which is not provided for by any international agreement, neither by the Hague Convention, based on any interpretation. And the interpretation of Nuremberg later comes to say that the occupation loan, to be within certain limits that are permissible by International Law, is only for the occupying forces and for the period of the Occupation. The occupation loan that was forced upon Greece was coercive and was a Nazi mechanism to neutralise the country. We know that it was not used for the occupying forces here, but it was used also for the German army, the Nazi army in general; therefore, it is not a loan which is not written off, and it is thus contestable. Secondly, the German reparations. The reparations for all the damage that the Nazi powers inflicted here in Greece against infrastructure, against structures, for anything that degraded the country itself, and society. Let me also note that the results of the occupation loan was hunger and the death of so many people, that the country lacked the basic resources for society to be able to survive during this entire period. Finally, compensation for the victims, for all those thousands of victims from the martyred villages, from the cities etc., the victims of the war, of occupation during the course of the Occupation.All these were mechanisms of the Nazi powers to destroy a country. And I say this because the Nazis themselves, as early as 1943, admit that what they imposed upon the country is unsustainable. They themselves recognise the loan and that it must be repaid. It is in not written off. Therefore, this a something important. They themselves admit that this country paid a great deal over this entire period of the Occupation. Many others have admitted to same thing. I would also like to note that in this firm stance of Germany, in which certain flaws exist, it is good for it to also be heard here, to recall the phrase of Helmut Schmidt in 2015, when he responded to a journalist's questions, on a German television channel, who asked him about reparations, about the German debt to Greece, and he said, “It does not suffice for Germany to say that the issue is closed. Greece must also agree.” I believe that this is the square one from which one can begin. One cannot say unilaterally that an issue is closed and beyond that, that there is no chance for something like that to be sought.On the other hand, we have international agreements. It has been said by many that the Greek State did nothing for seventy years. So that we can be consistent and because, at least personally, I feel that a national strategy is being forged here today and we must be familiar with certain things, I would like to say that up to 1990, the closure of peace had been suspended, the peace treaty in other words, because the two Germanies were not unified. From 1990, with the famous “2+4” Treaty between the then Soviet Union, the US, England, France, and the two Germanies, peace is signed, but this does not bind Greece, under any circumstances with regard to not having any claims. Moreover, Greece did not sign. Greece simply recognised the proclamation of the CSCE. So, there is no signature or commitment on the part of Greece whatsoever of having renounced through this agreement, the “2+4” Treaty, any claims that is has.Thus, the issue of re-energizing the matter essentially begins from 1990 onwards. Inter-state agreements had been made between Greece and Germany since 1960. They did not pertain to the occupation loan. They did not pertain to reparations. In other words, they did not pertain to State debt. They pertained to certain compensation to private individuals, victims of the Nazis, which was limited as was any money that was given by Germany. And I say it was limited - and here I will go into another subject with the limited time that I have got - because, if I am not mistaken, 114 million was given, while in Holland, which did not have even one-hundredth of the victims that Greece had, 400 million was given. I say this with reservation, for fear that I am making a mistake with regard to the figures. Therefore, there is an issue with the German people and the German government here.We are friends and allies, and we must not forget this. And I say that we must not forget this because we do not raise the issue of German debt in order to implicate another people as being an enemy, the German people. On the contrary, indeed. We don’t wish for this Europe to give birth to beasts again. And herein lies the irony of the story, when a Nazi party-organisation comes here and points fingers about what the Greek state has done with regard to German reparations, when its Leader takes an oath in the name of Hitler. Because this is what we are talking about. So, we don’t wish to make enemies. On the contrary, we wish to invite the democratic German people to recognise this issue. Because recognition, remembering is a painful process. Remembering does not mean carrying out commemorative events at Kalavryta, on the anniversary, at Distomo, Kandanos, Viannos - lest I list all the places. It is a painful process and it implies an initiative also from the party whose history has such destructive black holes.Therefore, we call upon the German people to undertake its democratic responsibility to its history and to the history of Europe, to concede to and accept what happened. Because you know what? When such wounds remain, such trauma, which is not confessed, not discussed, this always leaves space for beasts to sprout, as we are seeing today. The economic crisis immediately showed how many stereotypes spring up, and how easily these stereotypes spring up when these things have not been resolved.Because Greece is not yet enshrined in the conscience of European peoples, and particularly the German people, as to how much it has paid for Democracy and Liberty to exist in this Europe. Because for me this is the most important thing, for it to become part of conscience. We are not begging. We are not seeking restoration. Pay attention to the terms. We are seeking compensation, reparations for the occupation loan as a tribute that this country, this people paid with its blood and was completely destroyed for democracy in Europe. It is only in this manner that we can establish democracy. Not looking towards the future and casting stones in the past, but when we light up the past with every light in order to move forward.So, it is important for us to mobilise Germany’s democratic public opinion, as well as that of Europe as a whole. And I say this because we had an unfortunate moment. Because Mr Venizelos said that we have not stated in a formal manner, even I who was at the time the Alternate Minister of Education, I had stated it to my counterpart, because as luck would have it, prior to my visit to her Ministry, I stopped by the German Historical Museum, which had an exhibition on what happened during World War II. This exhibition ran for one year. Do you know which country was completely absent? Greece, which I don’t know whether it paid the greatest price in this battle but paid one of the steepest prices in terms of bloodshed and destruction in this battle. So, it is important.So that I don’t take up too much time, what will happen going forward with regard to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs? Inter-state agreements, inter-state negotiations. I believe that Greece has the tools to negotiate, so that Germany accepts the debts on all levels, those that I mentioned, the occupation loan, compensations, reparations, and to show that this ethical, political, financial problem does exist.I am not going to say that the problem is solely an ethical one. It is also financial, because peoples must realise that in every stage of our history, that History has materiality. It is not something that just finished, which happened once and was then over. There is destruction, and this destruction burdens us all. So that we know what to do going forward. Thus, inter-state negotiations which will include the problem. Because now, in recent years, we are doing coordinated and collective work. Inter-state negotiations. Updating of the German public. This first citizens’ movement which has been created in Germany is very important. Die Linke is very important, which is along these lines. Raising awareness. Raising awareness in any manner necessary.In addition, a committee (will be created) at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs which will co-ordinate all the actions, everything being carried out on the part of Greece and beyond that, any steps that need to be taken on an international level. I believe that we will manage, because we are on the right side of history, and we have something else that is very important: Presently in Europe, a large battle is being waged between Democracy and the beasts that are trying to resurface. This is why we have a duty to win, not only as Greek, but as Europeans, the European peoples and states.
 |
| READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT www.mfa.gr |
