Germany's president asked for forgiveness for his country on Sunday for the suffering of the Polish people during World War Two as Poland marked 80 years since the Nazi German invasion that unleashed the deadliest conflict in human history. The ceremonies began at 4:30 a.m. in the small town of Wielun, site of one of the first bombings of the war on Sept. 1, 1939, with speeches by Polish President Andrzej Duda and his German counterpart, Frank-Walter Steinmeier.
Few places saw death and destruction on the scale of Poland. It lost about a fifth of its population, including the vast majority of its 3 million Jewish citizens. After the war, its shattered capital of Warsaw had to rise again from ruins and Poland remained under Soviet domination until 1989."As a German guest I walk before you here barefoot. I look back in gratitude to the Polish people's fight for freedom. I bow sorrowfully before the suffering of the victim," Steinmeier said at event later in Warsaw.
"I ask for forgiveness for Germany's historical guilt. I profess to our lasting responsibility." US Vice President Mike Pence paid tribute to the courage of the Polish people. "None fought with more valour, determination, and righteous fury than the Poles," Pence told the gathering of leaders that included German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe.
For some in Poland, the conflict and its commemorations are still a live political issue, just weeks before a national vote.
For Poland's ruling Law and Justice (PiS) party, the memory of the war is a major plank of its "historical politics", aiming to counteract what it calls the West's lack of appreciation for Polish suffering and bravery under Nazi occupation.
Pence attended the ceremony instead of U.S. President Donald Trump who cancelled his trip due to the arrival of Hurricane Dorian, a disappointment to the PiS government which is seen as one of Washington's biggest allies in Europe. Pence underlined that relationship, saying: "America and Poland will continue to call on our allies to live up to the promises we have made to one another." Trump and the PiS government share views on issues such migration, energy and abortion, but the Warsaw government faces mounting isolation in Europe over accusations that it subverts democratic norms.
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