"The Germans systematically looted and materially destroyed Greece during the occupation from April 1941 to October 1944. They confiscated the tobacco harvests and put the industry, to the extent that it was important to the German defense industry under their control. Three quarters of the Greek merchant fleet were seized or destroyed by the Germans during their retreat. The so-called scorched earth policy ultimately led to the almost total destruction of the infrastructure of the Greek economy," emphasizes Karl Heinz Roth, German historian and co-founder of the Social History Foundation, in an interview with "Weser Kurier".
Referring to the "enormous demographic disaster", as the Bremen newspaper describes it, he says that "the Germans killed at least 330,000 civilians during the occupation, 140,000 people died of starvation, more than 90,000 people were killed either as hostages or in retaliation against the civilian population in rural areas. 59,000 members of the Jewish communities were displaced".
To the question of whether the claim of the Greek parliament to demand war reparations of 280 billion euros from Germany is justified, Mr. Roth answers:"Yes, both politically and from the point of view of international law and indeed without any limitation" and adds that for Greece "it's a matter of principle, it's not just about the money. Germany owes reparations and must face the responsibilities of its debt".
To the question of whether the Greek claims have been statute-barred after 70 years, he answers in the negative, because "in international law, there is no statute of limitations" and emphasizes that "the German government sees the issue differently and considers the matter to have expired legally and politically, but it has not expired . During the 1950s there were a number of international treaties, in which it is stated that the Federal Republic of Germany pays partial reparations, but the matter must be clarified in a general conference or in the context of a peace treaty.
When the de facto peace treaty was concluded in 1990, i.e. the so-called "2+4 Treaty", in connection with the German unification process, the issue of reparations was excluded. Nevertheless, the German government says that with this contract the issue of reparations has finally been settled. Until 1990, therefore, "consolation" and after 1990 "everything is over". However, this is not valid from the point of view of international law. Greece did not sign this convention and was not sitting at the negotiating table. Therefore, the Treaty does not apply to Greece".
Mr. Roth also calls the 115 million marks paid to the surviving victims a "charity," "an amount which corresponds to only 300 marks per capita by today's calculations," he says.
The total amount of 280 billion euros estimated by the Greek Court of Auditors that Germany owes Greece is based on salvaged records, which they (ie the Foundation for Social History) have checked in detail and "we can confirm the data they collected" .
The fact that he and his colleagues calculate the amount of the German debt at 190 billion euros instead of the 280 that the Greeks calculate explains it as follows:"The problem lies in the fact that the Greek experts calculate the war reparations as unpaid interest-bearing loan. The correct way to find its current value is to start from inflation. That's why our calculation is lower, but it still amounts to 190 billion euros."
To the question of whether it is realistic to give such an amount to Greece, Mr. Roth answers in the negative, because a number of other European countries "would claim correspondingly huge amounts and the total would be gigantic. Therefore, the amount must be negotiated so that it is feasible." He therefore proposes the payment of the compensations within 15-20 years with a parallel reduction of the debt to 1/3, that is to say that 60-70 billion euros should be paid in the end, so that their repayment is feasible.
Finally, in order for Greece to have a realistic possibility of collecting the reparations, he believes that it must "form a common front with the other countries that have similar claims and exert joint political pressure, because the German government is not willing to discuss so far. If the affected countries act skillfully, the Federal Republic of Germany will eventually have to back down from its categorical "no".
SOURCE:APE-ME