The preparations for the commemoration of the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Nazi death camp Auschwitz-Birkenau on January 27 illustrated again, if there was any need, how sensitive relations between Poland and Israel still are.
A few weeks ago, a journalist asked Polish Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Wladyslaw Bartoszewski a theoretical question: What would happen if Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu wished to participate in the commemoration ceremony? Would Poland then execute the international arrest warrant of the International Criminal Court issued against him?
Bartoszewski answered evasively that “Poland is a signatory to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court and, as such, is obliged to comply with the orders issued by the ICC.”
Netanyahu is not planning to attend the ceremony in Auschwitz. The Israeli delegation to the commemorative event will be headed by Education Minister Yoav Kisch. However, headlines in Poland, Israel, and around the globe created a new crisis between Warsaw and Jerusalem, stating that Netanyahu would be arrested upon arrival in Poland.
Facts became again a victim of politics, as happened so often in the past between both nations. Only the intervention of Poland’s president, Andrzej Duda, avoided an escalation from this fictional crisis.
Duda, elected twice to the presidency as a candidate of the current main opposition party, the ultraconservative Law and Justice Party, sent a letter to his political rival Prime Minister Donald Tusk in which he urged the Polish government not to arrest Netanyahu should he come to Auschwitz.
A few hours later, the government in Warsaw – which misses no opportunity to fight with Duda – accepted the president’s call. Netanyahu will not be arrested on a visit to Auschwitz which he was not planning to make.
However, what would happen if he decides to visit Warsaw and not Auschwitz sometime in the future?
During his terms of presidency, 52-year-old Duda has experienced many tensions between Poland and Israel. After a relatively long period of slow but constant rapprochement that began with the fall of Communism, a series of conflicts related to the Holocaust poisoned again the still-shaky relations between Poland, on one side, and Israel and the Jews, on the other.
It all started seven years ago, on the eve of the 73rd commemoration of Auschwitz’s liberation – an event whose date was chosen to be International Holocaust Remembrance Day.
An amendment to a law, falsely called in Israel “the Holocaust law,” was approved by the Polish parliament and started a war of historical narratives between both countries on the role some Poles had in the killing of the Jews.
Duda later vetoed the controversial parts of the amendment and played a pivotal role in the attempts to play down tensions and normalize relations.
However, the recent change of governments in Warsaw and the arrival of a center-left government caused new disappointment on the Israeli side: the new government, led by Tusk, a former president of the European Council, turned a cold shoulder on Israel after the Hamas pogroms of October 7, for no evident reason.
In a few months, Duda’s presidency will end. In the coming spring Poland will elect a new president. Nine candidates have already confirmed their participation in the presidential race. One politician, who might still join the race, is Grzegorz Braun, an antisemitic member of parliament.
In the last European election of June 2024, Braun won more than 100,000 votes. The two leading candidates, however, are historian Karol Nawrocki, currently head of the Institute of National Remembrance, representing the Law and Justice Party; and the current mayor of Warsaw, Rafal Trzaskowski, running for the ruling Civic Platform Party of Tusk.
President Duda, the world will commemorate in two weeks the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz. Do you have the feeling that the memory of the horrors of the Holocaust and World War II is fading?
Time is passing and events are becoming history, not only in the sense that they are written in books of history, but in the sense that we are witnessing the vanishing of witnesses of those time – in this case, the vanishing of the survivors.
During my time in office as president of Poland, I participated in the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz and now the 80th. Five years ago we had 200 survivors attending the ceremony. This year we might have with us some 50 survivors.
The importance of these anniversaries is that they are the very last meetings with the survivors and a chance for them to give us their testimony. Their testimony is fundamental for the security of the world and for the future protection of human dignity and keeping humanity’s immensely important values.
That is why I attach such big importance to the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz. Not only because it is taking place here in Poland, but first and foremost because the very last survivors are still with us to participate in it. They are very advanced in age. How many of them will be with us in five years? Their testimony is invaluable for the world, and that is why this ceremony is so important.
How can you explain the scandal around the invitation, or rather non-invitation, of Israel’s Prime Minister Netanyahu to the commemoration event this year?
There are several elements to that question. First of all, there is an interstate element between the two countries. Then there is the human element.
The invitation to participate in the commemoration is sent by the museum of Auschwitz and it is an open invitation to everyone. That is a point that I would very much like to stress. It means that everybody who wants to can come. The invitation was sent to the Israeli authorities but also to all the Jews around the world. Every person for whom the remembrance of the Holocaust is important can attend and meet the last survivors.
Let us remember that it is not just the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz, where more than a million Jews were murdered by Germans, but it is also the international day of remembrance of the Holocaust, the victims of which were six million Jews, of which three million were Polish Jews. That is why this commemoration is so special.
Today there is no doubt that the heir of the remembrance of the Holocaust is Israel, the Jewish state. Therefore the authorities of Israel represent Jews. The authorities of Israel are the heirs of the remembrance of the Holocaust, and Poland is the guardian of this remembrance.
The German Nazis occupied Polish territories in World War II, where they built most of their death industry and perpetrated the Holocaust. That is why we Poles have the obligation to guard the sites where the Holocaust took place and take care of them. That includes bearing the costs of maintenance of the camps and museums. We are also responsible for inviting people to come to the commemoration events.
In my opinion, as a human being and as president of Poland, no Jew in the world can be denied the possibility to come to Auschwitz on this day and pay tribute to the victims.
We, in Poland, have to welcome everyone who is willing to come here, provide them with security, and allow them to honor freely the memory of those who were murdered and pray for them. This is immensely important.
This circumstance is absolutely unique in nature, and that is why I made an exception of it. Every Jew who feels the need to come here on the day of the liberation of Auschwitz and the international day of remembrance of the Holocaust should be able to come here and have this right guaranteed.
That was the intention of the letter that I have sent to the Polish prime minister, in order to provide this guaranteed right also to the prime minister of Israel, who has Polish roots, as his father was born here in Warsaw.
It is not only the fact that he is the democratically elected prime minister of Israel, who represents the nation of Israel, but he has a personal connection to Poland. Thus, he is connected to the three million Jews who lived here before World War II and were murdered by Germans in the Holocaust.
There might be people who wouldn’t agree with me, but this is my opinion.
According to your opinion should Prime Minister Netanyahu be able to visit Poland not only for commemorative events of the Holocaust?
We are speaking about this particular commemoration, and the letter I sent to the Polish prime minister concerned this ceremony because doubts arose and were expressed in the media and in the political arena about this issue. That was the reason I decided to address the Polish prime minister, in order to clarify all these doubts.
I am glad that through the resolution adopted by the Polish government, my request expressed in my letter to the prime minister was fulfilled. I am satisfied with it.
The international courts of justice and certain legal definitions, such as genocide, were formed after World War II as a result of the crimes committed by Germany. Now we see these institutions and definitions targeting Israel, the Jewish state. Do you see in it an intended politicization of international justice?
There are a lot of discussions going on which are connected with this issue and with the guarantee given by the Polish government to the prime minister of Israel upon my request.
Some people say that [Russian President] Vladimir Putin should also get a guarantee of untouchability. I believe that such statements are totally mistaken and out of place. Let’s remember that it was upon the order of Putin that the absolutely unjustified invasion of an independent and sovereign state, Ukraine, took place.
There is evidence that, in this invasion, murders were committed, and people were shot in the back of their heads. In Bucha, for example, children were kidnapped and dragged to the depths of Russia in order to undergo Russification.
There is evidence and documents of the crimes committed by the Russians, pits of killings were uncovered. What we saw reminds us of the crimes of World War II and what happened in the former Yugoslavia. The perpetrators of those crimes were later brought to justice and tried for committing war crimes.
We have to be clear on one thing: it was not Benjamin Netanyahu, the prime minister of Israel, who initiated an attack on the Palestinians in Gaza.
It was Hamas men who, from the Gaza Strip, attacked out of the blue the peaceful population of kibbutzim and towns in Israel. Some people might forget that this attack opened a new chapter in the Middle East conflict. It was the attack of Hamas on the Israeli population that triggered this chapter.
So there is no comparison between these two situations and these two leaders, and I will never agree that such comparisons will be made. On the one hand, we have 100% brutal aggression and the willingness of one country to subject another country to it. On the other hand, we have a reaction to a brutal attack against Jews.
We are speaking here about absolutely different situations and distinct histories. There is nothing in common between the Russian-Ukrainian history and the history in the Middle East between Israelis and Palestinians.
If someone still wants to make such comparisons, and there are people talking about the “rain of missiles being fired,” I can see the rain of missiles fired by Russia on Ukraine and the rain of missiles fired by Iran directed at Israel.
Israel and Russia cannot be compared, and the two leaders neither. It is very dishonest and indecent to try to create any equation between them.
I would like to stress that Poland supports and will continue to support the two-state solution in the Middle East. I am also a supporter of this solution. But an agreement has to be worked out on it between the nations concerned, and I do hope that it will be done.
Many Israelis would tell you the two-state solution died on October 7, and that they are unwilling to let the Palestinians have a state that will become another terror territory that will endanger their security again.
That is why working out this solution is so complicated and why I am saying that there has to be an agreement worked out between both nations, so that both can say: maybe we are not fully satisfied but we will accept it. I believe that such a solution will remove the fears from another war breaking out.
People will say that there have been so many victims, so we don’t want to risk another war. On this issue, I have to say that I am very hopeful about the second term in office of US President Donald Trump, which will begin in a few days.
Remember that Trump and nobody else brought the Abraham Accords, agreements between Israel and Arab states, which have stabilized the situation between Israel and the Arab world. We can say that there is hope that, during the second term of Trump, there might be more steps taken that will enable to achieve that peace. I believe that this is one of the big ideas which President Trump has.
The pogroms of October 7 were the worst massacres Jews experienced since the Holocaust. There were Polish-Israeli citizens among the victims and hostages. Unlike other governments, the Polish government kept a very low profile in denouncing these pogroms. No Polish high official visited Israel to express solidarity. Why?
As Poland we face a special situation, since we have victims on both sides. We have Polish victims who were killed by Hamas, either during the attacks of October 7 or later, people who died as hostages. But we also have Polish victims who were killed by Israeli fire, like the Polish volunteer who died during an attack by the IDF.
That might be one of the reasons why we are trying to look objectively at this conflict. We assess it the way it is and try not to side with any of the parties.
That is why I am saying that there is a difference between murdering people by shooting them in the back of their heads, as is being done in Ukraine, and the victims in the Gaza Strip. We can say that death is always the same. But the way it is inflicted can be different.
In the case of Alex Dancyg, I was personally involved in trying to rescue him. I had a conversation with his son. We did everything we could, trying to save him, but unfortunately we failed.
Since October 7, the world is experiencing an unprecedented wave of antisemitism. In Poland there is a member of parliament, Grzegorz Braun, who is building a political career on antisemitism. Prime Minister Tusk is keeping quiet on antisemitic events. What’s the reason for it?
In Poland, we observe from time to time antisemitic events and behavior. But I would like to stress strongly that these have no physically aggressive character. You can walk in the streets of Warsaw or other cities wearing a kippah without having any problems or being attacked.
In Poland, there are no attempts to set synagogues or cultural Jewish centers or offices of Jewish organizations on fire. You don’t see police posts or patrols at the entrances of synagogues and Jewish centers.
Additionally, you have in Poland big Jewish cultural events, such as the Jewish festival of Krakow or the Singer’s Warsaw festival. Thousands of people participate in these events each year. Thousands of guests come from abroad. These events take place without any problems or negative events.
Poland is a country where antisemitism is not a matter of security. It is more a problem of morality. To say it simply: it is indecent to be antisemitic. That is why certain antisemitic behavior that is displayed from time to time to gain popularity in politics just evokes disgust.
Should MP Braun, who is running in the coming presidential election in Poland, be sanctioned for his acts?
Let me put it delicately: Poland is a democratic country. You are now speaking to the president of the Republic of Poland. I understand that you are suggesting that he will run as a candidate in the presidential election. I have doubts that he would be elected by the Polish people.
Hungary used its EU presidency for the adoption of a declaration on preserving and securing Jewish life in Europe. More and more European Jews feel uncomfortable in Europe and think of leaving it. Will Poland, during its current EU presidency, plan any similar initiative to ensure the continuation of Jewish life in Europe?
The relations between Poland and the EU are more the domain of the Polish government.
I want to stress that everyone who wants can come to Poland. We already see that Poland is becoming a safe haven to different groups of people, including Jews.
We are seeing in Poland a revival and renaissance of the culture of Polin, a place where, according to Jewish tradition, you can rest. [“Polin,” in Hebrew, literally means here you can live or sleep – E.B.]
In your 10 years of presidency, you have experienced ups and downs in the relations between Poland and Israel. How would you describe these relations now? What could be done to improve them, and what recommendations will you give your successor to preserve good relations with Israel?
I would describe relations between Poland and Israel as stable. Of course, there are issues where we have differences of opinion. There are also some issues regarding Poland that are not resolved in Israel the way it should be.
For example: for years now we have been asking and demanding that young Israelis coming to Poland should visit not only the horrific death camps, which were constructed here by the Nazis, but also see the place where for hundreds of years Jewish culture was flourishing.
What I want to say very clearly, and I think it should be known to everyone, Jewish or non-Jewish, in the world: The Jewish culture in Poland flourished and boomed for almost 1,000 years. Poland was the place to where Jews from all over Europe fled from pogroms. Polish kings gave Jews special privileges. Very often, members of the Chosen People were serving here as treasurers of the state.
The invasion of Nazi Germany in 1939 destroyed that culture over a period of five years. They extinguished a period of 1,000 years of history.
There are some accusations toward Polish people and some voices say that those 1,000 years were not ideal. Of course, they were not ideal or perfect. There were a lot of problems, as it always happens in a coexistence between nations. Those who say that Jews had such hard times in Poland should answer the following question: why did Jews come and settle down here?
The common history between us was interrupted only by the arrival of Nazi Germany, which occupied our land, destroyed our state, and carried out the Holocaust.
You have to remember that besides the one million Jewish victims murdered in Auschwitz, the second biggest ethnic group of murdered persons there were Poles, 70,000 Poles. Only then came 20,000 Roma and Sinti and 14,000 Russian prisoners of war, followed by victims from other nations.
Will you visit Israel again before leaving the presidency?
We will see. I will have some farewell visits and meetings. I still hope to meet Israel’s president, Isaac Herzog, and thank him for the common work, the very good contacts we have had, and the many good projects we have realized.
Going back to the second term of Donald Trump, are you afraid that Trump will abandon Ukraine in order to have some sort of peace with Russia?
Generally speaking, I am never afraid, and I am not afraid of President Trump. Quite on the contrary. I am peacefully waiting for the effects of his work and also to see the concept that he has on how to end the war in Ukraine. Personally, I believe that this concept hasn’t been revealed so far anywhere.
I am not attaching great importance to things that have been said by persons from the inner circle of Trump. I am not so much waiting for the words of President Trump but, rather, for his deeds.
I have cooperated personally with President Trump for four years, and I was able to see many positive effects of his projects and undertakings that had excellent results. That is why I am calmly waiting to see what comes next, after he takes office.
Some people tend to forget that he was the first US president who allocated such big funds to provide military assistance to Ukraine. I draw your attention to the US budget of 2020. He was the one who stopped the important energy project developed by Russia to establish energy hegemony over Europe – Nord Stream 2. Those were the sanctions imposed by the previous administration of Trump that stopped this project. And there were the Abraham Accords which we have mentioned.
Looking at Europe today – with Germany and the strengthening of the AfD, considered to be a nationalistic party; with Austria, where there will probably be a government headed by the FPÖ, another nationalistic party – there are more and more nationalistic political parties all over Europe. Where do you see Europe going to?
I am not concerned, as long as democratic principles are preserved, and as long as democratic societies are choosing democratically their governments.
The concerns arise only when the democratic principles are violated and democratic processes are distorted. Only then, fears and concerns might emerge.
Poland has just taken over the EU presidency. The first priority, which was adopted two years ago by the former Polish government of the Law and Justice Party, is to deepen the Euro-Atlantic bond, meaning the bonds between the EU and the US. This is the fundamental guarantee for the security and the economic prosperity of Europe.
Cooperation with the US is a well-tested way to assure stability in Europe, and it has been functioning for the last 100 years. First we had the outbreak of World War I, and it was only the engagement of the US that allowed to put an end to that war. Then there was a big depression in the US and Europe. They both went on separate ways.
The Nazis came to power in Germany. That led to the outbreak of World War II, and, once again, it was only the entry of the US in the war that allowed to end it, with horrible consequences and means. Only the dropping of two nuclear bombs ended the war in the Far East.
Only the US led to peace in the world. Then the Cold War came. In Europe it was a war without battlefields, but wars happened in other places – wars fought between Communism and the free world. The Cold War was won again by the US, thanks to the tough policies of [president] Ronald Reagan.
It is more than probable that no Soviet aggression on Europe took place, because the US was so strong and was able to demonstrate its strength. That is why I believe that the absolute precondition to peace and prosperity today is strong cooperation between the US and EU.
I am going to do my best in the coming seven months, before I leave the presidency, to further develop and build this relationship.
However, I will not interfere in the elections that happen in other countries and nations. I will, of course, do my best to participate in the coming Polish presidential election as a citizen.
You seem full of energy and ready to fight. What are your plans for after the presidency?
The most important thing is that I finish my mission and complete the duty that I was elected to perform by the Polish people.
If there are other challenges after I finish this mission, challenges in which I can be useful, I will probably stand up to them. If you look at the world of politics, I am still relatively young. This year I will be 53.