Poland marks the 85th anniversary of the outbreak of the Second World War with a commemorative ceremony, which was held in Warsaw, to remind of the treacherous attack of Nazi Germany.
Close to six million Poles died in the conflict. More than 50 million souls died worldwide, including six million Jews, killed during the Holocaust, half of which were Poles.
The commemorative ceremony on Sunday is traditionally held in Westerplatte, on the Baltic coast of Poland, where 85 years ago a Nazi German battleship opened fire on a Polish fortress.
In his speech in Westerplatte, Prime Minister Donald Tusk said that the horrors of the Second World War "are not abstract" and drew a parallel with the war in neighboring Ukraine.
"This army is coming from the east again," he said and called on NATO member states to be "completely committed to defense... in the face of the aggression we witnessed today after the warplanes over Ukraine," reported AFP.
Adolf Hitler's invasion of Poland prompted Great Britain and France to declare war on Nazi Germany. On September 17, the Soviet Union in turn invaded Poland.
After the Nazis broke the pact with Moscow, two alliances are fighting: the Osta forces, led by Germany, Italy and Japan, and the Allied powers, led by Great Britain, the Soviet Union and the United States.
Polish President Andrzej Duda took part in the commemorative ceremony in the western Polish city of Velun, where the first German bombs fell 85 years ago.
Duda said that the "apology" from Germany was not enough and called for reparations, adding: "This issue is not resolved."
Despite the fact that 85 years have passed since the beginning of the war, according to Poland, there are still unresolved issues.
The current pro-European government of Poland, led by Tusk, called on Germany to provide financial compensation for the losses the country suffered from the Nazi armies.
The cabinet repeated the previous similar pressure on the "Law and Justice" party (PiS), which lost power in the elections last October.
During his visit to mark the anniversary of the Warsaw Uprising, a doomed rebellion against the occupation authorities, German President Frank-Walter Scheinmeier spoke about plans to create a memorial in memory of the Polish victims of the Nazis.
"At the same time, there are many other efforts, including for the rest of the survivors of the German occupation. Our two governments maintain a close relationship on this issue," he said.
However, Scheinmeier did not provide more details on possible compensatory measures.
According to the Polish media, there are discussions between Warsaw and Berlin for financial compensation for the victims of Nazi Germany, which is still alive. Poland thinks that up to 70,000 souls will have the right to such. BGNES
