Author Topic: Don't mention the war  (Read 30522 times)

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Online Maik

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Don't mention the war
« on: Wednesday, 11 March, 2015 @ 02:15:57 »
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Greece to demand WWII reparations from Germany
Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras has accused Germany of using "legal tricks" to avoid paying World War II reparations. Germany has repeatedly said it has honored all of its obligations resulting from the war.

Greece announced Tuesday it is moving forward with a demand to seek World War II reparations from Germany, as Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras accused Berlin of avoiding repayment of damages stemming from the Nazi occupation.

"Germany has never properly paid reparations for the damage done to Greece by the Nazi occupation," Tsipras told the Greek parliament Tuesday. "The crimes carried out by the Nazis are still vivid, and we have a moral obligation to remember what the forces did to the country."

Greece is seeking 160 billion euros in compensation to cover the loan and damages resulting from the occupation.
http://www.dw.de/greece-to-demand-wwii-reparations-from-germany/a-18306731

Online Maik

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Re: Don't mention the war
« Reply #1 on: Wednesday, 11 March, 2015 @ 12:25:54 »
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Athens threatens to seize German assets over WWII reparations

Justice Minister Nikos Paraskevopoulos has said he is ready to sign an older court ruling that will enable the foreclosure of German assets in Greece in order to compensate the relatives of victims of Nazi crimes during the Second World War.

Greece's Supreme Court ruled in favor of Distomo survivors in 2000, but the decision has not been enforced.

Distomo, a small village in central Greece, lost 218 lives in a Nazi massacre in 1944.
http://www.ekathimerini.com/4dcgi/_w_articles_wsite1_1_11/03/2015_548093

Offline Alan + Ceann

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Re: Don't mention the war
« Reply #2 on: Wednesday, 11 March, 2015 @ 23:23:36 »
Don't mention the war ?  I mentioned it once but I think I got away with it :yahoo:  You started it, No I didn't, Yes you did you invaded Poland  :yahoo:
sorry but its just so funny.
Alan

PS I agree with everything the Greek Prime Minister said, upon existing the war the Germans destroyed trillions of euros of property in towns allover Europe. (Oradour-sur-Glane ! is just a small example).

Online Maik

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Re: Don't mention the war
« Reply #3 on: Tuesday, 17 March, 2015 @ 17:17:26 »
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German coalition politicians break ranks on Greek WWII reparations

Leaders from the junior partner in Germany's coalition government have lent their support for Greek war reparations. They said Germany's moral and legal duties should be separated from the Greek debt debate.

In an interview with German news magazine Der Spiegel published Tuesday, leading politicians from the junior partner in Germany's governing coalition have lent their support to the idea that Germany should pay reparations from World War II to Greece.

"It's about recognizing the fact that we committed a serious injustice in Greece," Gesine Schwan, chairwoman of the Social Democratic Party (SPD) values committee, told Spiegel.

The damages in question date back more than 70 years. Under the German occupation in WWII, thousands of Greeks were murdered, infrastructure was destroyed, and Greece's central bank was forced into giving Germany a loan. Germany never reimbursed individual claims.

Until now, only the opposition Left Party in Germany had supported the idea of paying war reparations to Greece.
http://www.dw.de/german-coalition-politicians-break-ranks-on-greek-wwii-reparations/a-18320151

Online Maik

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Re: Don't mention the war
« Reply #4 on: Thursday, 19 March, 2015 @ 13:13:09 »
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German couple pay Greece £630 'war reparations'

A German couple visiting Greece walked into a town hall and handed over €875 (£630) in what they said were second world war reparations.

Dimitris Kotsouros, the mayor of Nafplio, a seaport in the Peloponnese, said: “They came to my office yesterday morning, saying they wanted to make up for their government’s attitude. They made their calculations and said each German owed €875 for what Greece had to pay during world war two.”

The mayor of the historic town where the tourists deposited their cheque said the money had since been donated to a local charity. The couple chose his town “because it was the first capital of Greece in the 19th century”, he added.

Greek media reports named the pair as Ludwig Zacaro and Nina Lahge. They say Zacaro is retired and Lahge works a 30-hour week. They did not have enough money to pay for two, one paper said.
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/mar/19/german-couple-pay-greece-war-reparation-nafplio-tourists

Online Maik

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Re: Don't mention the war
« Reply #5 on: Sunday, 22 March, 2015 @ 15:09:26 »


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Merkel, Nazis and the occupation of Greece: Der Spiegel sets Europe talking

“Don’t mention the war!” John Cleese’s infamous character Basil Fawlty would have cried. But on Saturday (March 21), German weekly magazine Der Spiegel did just that… With bells on.

It’s headline: ‘The German Superpower’, seems, at worst, a little arrogant. But it is the front cover which has set tongues wagging on both sides of the continent.

This week’s image sees Chancellor Angela Merkel juxtaposed onto a picture of a group of Nazis standing at the Parthenon during the German occupation of Greece in World War II.

This, according to the publication, is how Europe views Germany.

The subsequent article does not liken Merkel to the Nazi forces of the Second World War. Rather, it attempts to show just how Germany is seen by the rest of Europe: as the unofficial ‘chief’ of the European Union.
http://www.euronews.com/2015/03/21/merkel-nazis-and-the-occupation-of-greece-der-spiegel-sets-europe-talking/


Der Spiegel article: Nazi Extortion: Study Sheds New Light on Forced Greek Loans

Online Maik

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Re: Don't mention the war
« Reply #6 on: Monday, 23 March, 2015 @ 14:20:27 »

Online Maik

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Re: Don't mention the war
« Reply #7 on: Tuesday, 24 March, 2015 @ 16:49:35 »
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In Greece, whether in a taxi, at the market or on the playground, I often hear people claim that Germany is waging war again: “This time, it’s an economic war!” One poll showed that a vast majority of Greeks believe Germany is working on creating a “Fourth Reich.”
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/03/25/opinion/greeces-unhappy-marriage.html

Interesting article in the NYT, a brief economic history of Greece from domination by Turkey to domination by the troika.

Online Maik

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Re: Don't mention the war
« Reply #8 on: Tuesday, 07 April, 2015 @ 02:17:27 »
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Greece puts figure of €279bn on claim for German reparations

Athens officially quantifies sum which includes repayment of forced loan and return of archaeological treasures
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/apr/06/greece-puts-figure-of-279bn-on-claim-for-german-reparations

Online Maik

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Re: Don't mention the war
« Reply #9 on: Tuesday, 07 April, 2015 @ 17:16:32 »
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Germany's economy minister said on Tuesday his country was ready to help Greece get back on its feet and stay in the euro zone but it wasn't clear to him how they could keep helping.

"This country (....) is ready to help (Greece) get back on its feet - moreover in my firm opinion in the euro and not outside the euro," Sigmar Gabriel said during a talk at the economy ministry.

"How one can do that, does still not appear to me to be very clear," he said.

Gabriel also criticised Greek comments that it owes nearly 279 billion euros in reparations for the Nazi occupation of the country, saying World War Two reparation payments had nothing to do with negotiations on Greece's current debt crisis.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/04/07/eurozone-greece-germany-idUSB4N0VX00420150407


Well, OK, I'm no economist but if Germany were to pay up for earlier attempts to bleed Greece dry... well, hey, maybe it would help Greece's current situation.

Offline Mediterranean Man

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Re: Don't mention the war
« Reply #10 on: Tuesday, 07 April, 2015 @ 22:57:14 »
All part of the rich tapestry!
Greek media announce friendly preliminary conversations with Russia and simultaneously release a quote about WW2 reparations! Is it games? Is it a plan A & B? Or are they clutching at straws?
Time will tell....
Fascinating!!!

Online Maik

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Re: Don't mention the war
« Reply #11 on: Friday, 01 May, 2015 @ 21:01:47 »
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German president says Berlin should be open to Greek war reparations

German President Joachim Gauck expressed support on Friday for Athens' demands for reparations for the Nazi occupation of Greece in World War Two, even though the government in Berlin has repeatedly rejected the claims.

Gauck, who has little real power in Germany but a penchant for defying convention, said in an interview to be published in Saturday's Sueddeutsche Zeitung newspaper that Germany should consider its historical responsibility to Greece.

Greece's demand for 278.7 billion euros (206.14 billion pounds) in reparations for the brutal Nazi occupation have mostly fallen on deaf ears, but some legal experts say it may have a case.
http://uk.reuters.com/article/2015/05/01/uk-eurozone-greece-germany-reparations-idUKKBN0NM43H20150501

Online Maik

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Re: Don't mention the war
« Reply #12 on: Saturday, 02 May, 2015 @ 21:26:25 »
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Merkel Says Germany Can’t Cut Off Nazi Past, Cites Greece

While voicing understanding for the “long-lasting wounds” caused by the Nazis across Europe, the chancellor declined to address Greek demands for war reparations and said the task facing European governments now is to halt the rise in public debt.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-05-02/merkel-says-germany-can-t-cut-off-nazi-past-cites-greece

Online Maik

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Re: Don't mention the war
« Reply #13 on: Sunday, 10 May, 2015 @ 22:32:29 »
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Nazi invasion footage shown on Athens metro demands German war reparations
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/nazi-invasion-footage-shown-on-athens-metro-demands-german-war-reparations-10239684.html


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In 1942, the Greek Central Bank was forced by the occupying Nazi regime to loan 476 million Reichsmarks at 0% interest to Nazi Germany. In 1960, Greece accepted 115 million Marks as compensation for Nazi crimes. Nevertheless, past Greek governments have insisted that this was only a down-payment, not complete reparations. In 1990, immediately prior to German reunification, West Germany and East Germany signed the Two Plus Four Agreement with the former Allied countries of the United States, Great Britain, France, and Russia. Since that time, Germany has insisted that all matters concerning World War II, including further reparations to Greece, are closed because Germany officially surrendered to the Allies and to no other parties, including Greece.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/German_reparations_for_World_War_II

Online Maik

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Re: Don't mention the war
« Reply #14 on: Wednesday, 13 May, 2015 @ 23:41:47 »
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German Bid to Reconcile With Greece Over Nazi Atrocities Lags

A German government fund meant as a gesture of atonement for Nazi atrocities in Greece during World War II is languishing as the two countries spar over Greece’s future financing, German officials said.

With Greece and other euro-area governments deadlocked over completing the nation’s 240 billion-euro ($270 billion) bailout and possibly starting a new aid program, the German initiative begun last year is unlikely to get off the ground before a deal is in place, said two German government officials who asked not to be identified because their discussions with Greek counterparts are private.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-05-12/german-greek-reconciliation-bid-languishes-amid-bailout-impasse

Online Maik

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Re: Don't mention the war
« Reply #15 on: Saturday, 16 May, 2015 @ 08:21:31 »
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German Judge: “Greece’s Claims for Repayment of WWII Loan Are Just”

A top judge at Germany’s Supreme Administrative Court said Greece’s demand that Germany pays back the loan the country was forced to give during WWII is “just”, according to an article in German magazine Der Spiegel which will be published on Saturday.

According to the article, titled “Just claims”, Judge Dieter Deiseroth is quoted as saying that “there’s a lot of evidence to suggest it was a loan,” adding that the Greek claim to repay is just.

Deiseroth notes the request for individual compensation for victims could also be granted and that there cannot be a limitation period for Greece ‘s claims as a result of the Two Plus Four Agreement, which is a classic example of an agreement against a third party.

“Greece has not waived its demands,” Deiseroth explains, as it was never expressed in writing and “there’s no waver through silence.” He also suggested that Greece appeals to the International Court of Justice, if the country wants to claim the loan, which however requires the agreement of Berlin, or alternatively, OSCE’s Court of Conciliation and Arbitration.
http://greece.greekreporter.com/2015/05/16/german-judge-greeces-claims-for-repayment-of-wwii-loan-are-just/

Online Maik

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Re: Don't mention the war
« Reply #16 on: Monday, 19 October, 2015 @ 19:28:37 »
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Nazi archives shed light on WWII atrocities in Greece

From the number of Cretans to be executed for every dead German soldier to advice on which brothel to use, new research is shedding light on Nazi wartime atrocities in Greece.

Greece's defence ministry on Monday unveiled its first findings from research into formerly classified Wehrmacht papers found in archives in the United States.

The senior historian working on the project spoke of an "endless list" of killing, looting and burning of villages, drawn from local dispatches to the Wehrmacht high command and personal diaries.

They also list tonnes of goods which were seized at a time when much of the country was starving to death -- including livestock, wheat, olive oil, vehicles and even wool carpets.
http://www.france24.com/en/20151019-nazi-archives-shed-light-wwii-atrocities-greece

Online Maik

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Re: Don't mention the war
« Reply #17 on: Friday, 06 November, 2015 @ 02:30:41 »
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Germany still paying pensions to Spain’s Nazi volunteers during Second World War
More than 40 veterans who were wounded while fighting for the Nazis receive payments from Angela Merkel's government
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/spain/11977881/Germany-still-paying-pensions-to-Spains-Nazi-volunteers-during-Second-World-War.html

Online Maik

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Re: Don't mention the war
« Reply #18 on: Saturday, 13 August, 2016 @ 13:38:50 »
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Findings of war reparations probe head to Parliament

Greece is demanding 269 billion euros – adjusted to inflation – for damages incurred during the Nazi occupation in World War II, including forced loans plus interest.
http://www.ekathimerini.com/211218/article/ekathimerini/news/findings-of-war-reparations-probe-head-to-parliament

Online Maik

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Re: Don't mention the war
« Reply #19 on: Wednesday, 16 August, 2017 @ 21:07:49 »
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Greek President renews call for German war reparations

Speaking during a visit to the village of Kommeno, in Arta, northwestern Greece, where more than 300 people were executed by Nazi troops in 1943, Pavlopoulos said that the country was justified in seeking reparations for damages incurred during the war and for a forced loan taken out by the Axis powers.
http://www.ekathimerini.com/220908/article/ekathimerini/news/greek-president-renews-call-for-german-war-reparations

Online Maik

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Re: Don't mention the war
« Reply #20 on: Thursday, 20 September, 2018 @ 20:02:36 »
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Greece renews battle for war reparations
Now free of its debt crisis aid package, Greece's government is again pressing Berlin to pay billions in compensation for the death and destruction it suffered under German occupation in WWII.

In recent years, Germany has been the bogeyman in Greece. Europe’s most powerful country was viewed as the driving force behind the austerity measures forced on the bankrupt Mediterranean minnow after its debt crisis, a source of misery for its hapless citizens.

Germany hoped that the end of the Greek aid program last month might help reset relations. But where Berlin saw a chance for reconciliation, a newly confident Athens saw an opportunity: The Greek government is putting the issue of German war reparations back on the agenda.
https://global.handelsblatt.com/politics/greece-wwii-war-reparations-germany-965165

Online Maik

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Re: Don't mention the war
« Reply #21 on: Monday, 29 October, 2018 @ 11:33:03 »
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Greece reiterates claim of €288bn for damages under Nazi occupation
Athens says destruction played major part in delaying Greece’s development as modern state

Greece says it will pursue its quest for second world war damages and repayment of a loan forcibly extracted during Nazi occupation with renewed zest, despite Germany openly rejecting the claims.

Less than two weeks after German president, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, used a state visit to apologise for atrocities committed by his forefathers, Athens vowed to relaunch the campaign while hailing the onset of a new era in bilateral ties.

“This is an issue that psychologically still rankles, and as a government we are absolutely determined to raise it,” said Costas Douzinas, who heads the Greek parliament’s defence and foreign relations committee.

The report, compiled by a cross-party committee over several years, estimates that compensation of €288bn (£256bn) remains outstanding for the destruction Greece sustained between 1941 and 1944, the years the country was subject to Third Reich rule. It also calculates that a further €11bn is owed for a 476m Reichsmark loan Hitler’s forces seized from the Greek central bank in 1943.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/oct/29/greece-reiterates-claim-of-288bn-for-damages-under-nazi-occupation-germany

Online Maik

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Re: Don't mention the war
« Reply #22 on: Friday, 11 January, 2019 @ 14:40:42 »
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Greece says it has grounds for war reparations

Greece told German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Friday that it had grounds to pursue a legal claim for billions of euros in reparations for the Nazi occupation of the country in World War II.

Germany has dismissed Athens’s demands in the past, but the Greek president raised the issue anew with Merkel, who is on a two-day visit.

Hitler’s forces occupied Greece in 1941-1944 and extracted a so-called “occupation loan” used to help finance its campaign in North Africa. Runaway inflation followed, and tens of thousands of people starved to death.

Greece was forced to hand over 476 million reichsmarks, which Greek officials have estimated at £5.4 billion-£9 billion.
http://www.ekathimerini.com/236482/article/ekathimerini/news/greece-says-it-has-grounds-for-war-reparations

Online Maik

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Re: Don't mention the war
« Reply #23 on: Thursday, 04 April, 2019 @ 12:41:46 »
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Greece’s claim on German war reparations will be discussed at the Parliament on April 18

The debate on the WWII war reparations will take place during the plenary session on April 18, said House Speaker Nikos Voutsis during his visit at the National Resistance Museum in Larissa on Sunday.
https://int.ert.gr/greeces-claim-on-german-war-reparations-will-be-discussed-at-the-parliament-on-april-18/

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Re: Don't mention the war
« Reply #24 on: Wednesday, 17 April, 2019 @ 21:45:20 »
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Issue of WWII German war reparations again resurfaces in Greece

The issue of war reparation demands from Germany was again played out in Greek Parliament on Wednesday, re-emerging a month before European Parliament elections and months before a scheduled general election. The reason for Wednesday's session was, ostensibly, debate over an inter-party committee's report on the matter, which was concluded in 2016.

Taking the podium first, Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras said his hard left government aims to immediately send a note verbale to Berlin reiterating "the demands that arise from the Nazi invasion and occupation, as well as the war crimes by Nazi Germany."
https://www.naftemporiki.gr/story/1466234/issue-of-wwii-german-war-reparations-again-resurfaces-in-greece