BERLIN, Sept. 16 (Xinhua) -- Poland's new President, Karol Nawrocki, was rejected in his push for Germany to pay 1.3 trillion euros (1.54 trillion U.S. dollars) in reparations for damages in World War II during his inaugural visit to Berlin on Tuesday.
In response to the Polish president's demand for reparations, German Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier stressed that from Germany's perspective, the matter is considered legally closed, according to a statement from Cerstin Gammelin, spokeswoman of Germany's Federal President.
However, the statement noted that promoting remembrance and commemoration remains a joint commitment.
During Nawrocki's meeting with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, the Polish president also put forward the demand and Merz reaffirmed Germany's position, according to German magazine Der Spiegel, quoting government sources.
A statement from German federal government issued after Merz and Nawrocki's visit noted that promoting reconciliation with Poland after the atrocities of WWII and the German occupation remains a historical responsibility for the federal government.
But the statement did not mention the issue of reparations. ■
