10 Mar Do the Germans Still Owe the Greeks $70 Billion Euros?
Amid the war of words between Germans and Greeks over a possible Greek bailout, the Deputy Prime Minister of Greece has accused the Germans of stealing “the Greek gold that was in the Bank of Greece, they took away the Greek money and they never gave it back…” This was part of the reason why Greeks (presumably the ones now boycotting German goods) are not exactly feeling grateful to Germany for possibly bailing out their troubled public finances. As I understand it, some Greeks have maintained claims against Germany for wartime abuses and thefts. Germany’s response, I believe, is to cite the 1960 FRG-Greece treaty as a final settlement of all such war-related claims. I take it the protesters in Greece don’t accept this lawyerly argument, even though it is a pretty persuasive one. It demonstrates the limit of even ironclad international law obligations to settle deep-seated political disputes. Will the Germans ever get out from under the WWII guilt trip? Probably, but international treaties won’t be vehicle to do so.
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Responsibility – nope. Guilt – if they earn the trust of their European neighbors and the world in how they conduct themselves. Revanchards can come out in any century. For the French and the English have very very long memories as do the Poles and the rest of Europe. I well remember the serious worries about the German reunification after the fall of the Berlin Wall in many European capitals and in the United States.
Best,
Ben
“if they earn the trust of their European neighbors and the world in how they conduct themselves.” Are you serious? As a german, being born many decades after the war, I must say that I find this perspective difficult to accept. First, for roughly 60 years Germany (the FRG that is) has done nothing but earn the trust of its neighbours and the world. Ever wondered why Germany is nowadays the best-liked country world-wide? Second, what happend to all the serious worries about the reunification? All you hear these days are calls for Germany to contribute more troops to international military missions from the Balkans to Afghanistan. Third, revanchism for what? I’m surprised as to how unaware you seem to be of the changes that took place in German culture and mentality in the last 60 years, in particular since the first post-war Generation. Ever wondered what the student movement in ’68 was about in West-Germany and West-Berlin? Have you been to Germany in say, the last 15 years? Sure, a lot of people feel that its enough with the guilt-trip, but I can assure you that revanchism is the last thing on people’s mind. Having said all this, a… Read more »