Poland

German president asks Poland to forgive Nazi ‘tyranny’

cde.news desk 1 September 2019, 13:33 · 3 min read

epa07809149 German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier delivers a speech during a ceremony marking the 80th anniversary of the outbreak of World War II in Wielun, Poland, 01 September 2019. Wielun was the first Polish city bombed by Germany during World War II. The bombing of Wielun by Germany's Luftwaffe started at 04:40 hrs on 01 September 1939. EPA-EFE/ROMAN ZAWISTOWSKI POLAND OUT

German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier has asked Poland’s forgiveness for Nazi “tyranny”, 80 years on from the start of World War Two.

Steinmeier and a number of world leaders, including US Vice President Mike Pence, are in Poland to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the outbreak of World War II.

Early on Sunday, a ceremony was held in the Polish city of Wielun, where the first German bombs fell.

Anniversary of the outbreak of World War II — German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier delivers a speech during a ceremony marking the 80th anniversary of the outbreak of World War II in Wielun, Poland. EPA-EFE/ROMAN ZAWISTOWSKI

Steinmeier condemned the “desire to annihilate” that led to the attack.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel (L) and Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki (R) arrive at the Jozef Pilsudski Square to the to the ceremony marking 80th anniversary of World War II outbreak in Warsaw, Poland, 01 September 2019. The Luftwaffe attack on the Polish city of Wielun in the early morning of 01 September 1939 marked the beginning of World War II. A few minutes later, the German battleship SMS Schleswig-Holstein bombarded the Gdansk Westerplatte. EPA-EFE/LESZEK SZYMANSKI

“I bow my head before the Polish victims of Germany’s tyranny. And I ask forgiveness,” Steinmeier said, speaking in German and Polish.

In his speech, Polish President Andrzej Duda thanked Steinmeier for his presence at the painful anniversary.

“Eighty years ago, at this very moment, all hell rained down on Wielun — fuelled by German racist barbarity and the desire to annihilate,” said Steinmeier. The German president also asked for Polish forgiveness. “I bow before the Polish victims of German tyranny, and I ask for your forgiveness.”

Minutes later, Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki and the deputy head of the European Commission Frans Timmermans led observances at Westerplatte Peninsula, on the Baltic coast, the site of the war’s first battle as Polish troops put up resistance.

The main event in Warsaw will have a long list of participants, including German Chancellor Angela Merkel, French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe, Belgian Prime Minister and President-elect of the European Council Charles Michel as well as leaders from Croatia, the Czech Republic, Lithuania, Slovakia, Ukraine and Hungary.

US President Donald Trump was supposed to attend, but he canceled his planned trip saying that he needed to deal with a hurricane approaching the southeastern United States. Vice President Mike Pence is participating in the event in Trump’s place.