"Indeed, the federal government considers the issue to be legally closed. We do not think so," Pawlos said.
The ambassador argued that his country lost a third of its population during World War II, pointing out that there was no post-war deal that settled all claims for reparations.
Pawlos also noted that "it would be imprudent to assume that the problem will simply disappear after the 2023 elections."
"Don't forget that this demand has a lot of public support. The largest opposition party is now also in favor of reparations and has supported a decision on this issue in the Polish Sejm [the lower chamber of the parliament]," the diplomat said.
The ambassador also addressed the Ukraine crisis, saying that Warsaw is "puzzled" as to why countries with more economic potential than Poland failed to provide Kiev with more assistance. Berlin "has missed out on the opportunity to act at an early stage" but now "is doing its best to catch up," Pawlos said, adding that Poland appreciates it.
Ties between Poland and Germany have been strained by Warsaw's repeated claims to war damages. Germany argues that the issue was off the table since Poland relinquished demands for more reparations under their 1953 deal.