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Moscow, Russia - Poland Angry over Russian World War II Claims |
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Moscow, Russia - The Polish government has sharply criticized a Russian TV program it said blames Poland in part for World War II's outbreak.
A statement from the Polish Embassy in Moscow is the latest development in a rash of contentious disputes between Russia and its neighbors over portrayals of 20th Century history.
Tuesday's statement says assertions aired during a prime-time weekly newsmagazine on state-run Rossiya television were a "blatant example of the falsification of history." It said the show could hurt the countries' ties.
Among other things, the show said "the Poles tried to outwit everyone" before the war by proposing that Germany, Poland and Japan all attack Soviet Union.
Germany and the Soviet Union attacked Poland in September 1939 after reaching a secret agreement.
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Read Comments (6) — Post Yours »
1
Jun 24, 2009 at 02:57 PM Raphael Kaufman Says:
Like all lies, there is probably a grain of truth at it's core. Poland was and is a relatively weak country without defensible borders that is wedged between powerful neighbors. Throughout it's history it has attempted to avoid conquest by playing its neighbors off against each other. this hasn't usually worked very well as Poland has been successfully invaded by almost every Eurpoean country in the neighborhood including Sweden. Of course, nothing of the sort really took place. It was a myth cooked up by Stalin Y'S and Hitler Y'S to justify their invasion. The difference is that Germany has, for the most part, sincerely repudiated it's past whereas Putin and Russia wax nostalgic about the glory days when the Soviet Union was a world power. Many Russians actually revere Stalin Y'S.
P.S. The rayah that the charge is a lie is: How bizarre is the the idea of Poles outwitting anybody.
2
Jun 24, 2009 at 06:32 PM frater Says:
"Poland was and is a relatively weak country without defensible borders that is wedged between powerful neighbors." Yes, in the last 4 centuries or so, but not throughout its history. Until XVIIth century, the country was never really occupied and Polish troops stationed in Moscow for years (probably the only European armies to reach Moscow and hold to it for some time). Russians are not fond of this period. In fact, it seemed to have left such an impression on them that they even chose the date of the liberation from Poles as their new national holiday. Maybe as a result, whatever negative stereotypes they have about us (probably something along the lines of arrogant, megalomaniac, misguided, treacherous, etc. ) I doubt "dimwit" is one of them ;)
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Jun 24, 2009 at 06:26 PM Jonh Says:
“ Like all lies, there is probably a grain of truth at it's core. Poland was and is a relatively weak country without defensible borders that is wedged between powerful neighbors. Throughout it's history it has attempted to avoid conquest by playing its neighbors off against each other. this hasn't usually worked very well as Poland has been successfully invaded by almost every Eurpoean country in the neighborhood including Sweden. Of course, nothing of the sort really took place. It was a myth cooked up by Stalin Y'S and Hitler Y'S to justify their invasion. The difference is that Germany has, for the most part, sincerely repudiated it's past whereas Putin and Russia wax nostalgic about the glory days when the Soviet Union was a world power. Many Russians actually revere Stalin Y'S.
P.S. The rayah that the charge is a lie is: How bizarre is the the idea of Poles outwitting anybody. ”
Yes...very bizarre a Jew talking bad about Poland!! My Polish Slavic ancestors welcomed you , rescued you , and fed you for centuries while the rest of (western) Europe raped and pillaged you!! So, that´s nice of you ungrateful and evil people!!! Poles and other Slavs have learnt the lesson, finally!! They simply don´t trust you!! João ( a Polish Brazilian)
4
Jun 24, 2009 at 07:08 PM frater Says:
“ Yes...very bizarre a Jew talking bad about Poland!! My Polish Slavic ancestors welcomed you , rescued you , and fed you for centuries while the rest of (western) Europe raped and pillaged you!! So, that´s nice of you ungrateful and evil people!!! Poles and other Slavs have learnt the lesson, finally!! They simply don´t trust you!! João ( a Polish Brazilian) ”
Raphael didn't say anything bad about Poles (except the uninspired joke). So relax. Yes, Jews should remember the relative good - no other country in the world allowed such a huge Jewish community to develop for so long and it's not Poles' fault that it ended the way it did. But anti-Semitism rose in the last century and given what was happening in the interwar period and after the war you can't blame Jews that they have some bad memories. As for the "lesson learnt" - speak for yourself. I'm a Pole too and I would be glad if there was a big, vibrant Jewish community in Poland. Then, they would be the ones who would argue with their compatriots on our behalf ;)
5
Jun 24, 2009 at 08:53 PM bigwheeel Says:
“ Like all lies, there is probably a grain of truth at it's core. Poland was and is a relatively weak country without defensible borders that is wedged between powerful neighbors. Throughout it's history it has attempted to avoid conquest by playing its neighbors off against each other. this hasn't usually worked very well as Poland has been successfully invaded by almost every Eurpoean country in the neighborhood including Sweden. Of course, nothing of the sort really took place. It was a myth cooked up by Stalin Y'S and Hitler Y'S to justify their invasion. The difference is that Germany has, for the most part, sincerely repudiated it's past whereas Putin and Russia wax nostalgic about the glory days when the Soviet Union was a world power. Many Russians actually revere Stalin Y'S.
P.S. The rayah that the charge is a lie is: How bizarre is the the idea of Poles outwitting anybody. ”
I agree with the statement in your postscript. But the incontrovertible fact remains (I may sound like a broken record. But the hurt is so deeply ingrained in my hear that I have to point out the truth on every occasion) that the overwhelming majority of the polish population had so much hatred for the Jews that in spite of the fact they were being invaded by the nazis, they still welcomed them with open arms because "They took care of the Jews"! The Warsaw Ghetto uprising would have been successful if the polish partisans hadn't double-crossed the Jewish fighters! And after the war, they had the nerve to portray themselves as the victims!!!
6
Jun 25, 2009 at 06:54 AM frater Says:
“ I agree with the statement in your postscript. But the incontrovertible fact remains (I may sound like a broken record. But the hurt is so deeply ingrained in my hear that I have to point out the truth on every occasion) that the overwhelming majority of the polish population had so much hatred for the Jews that in spite of the fact they were being invaded by the nazis, they still welcomed them with open arms because "They took care of the Jews"! The Warsaw Ghetto uprising would have been successful if the polish partisans hadn't double-crossed the Jewish fighters! And after the war, they had the nerve to portray themselves as the victims!!! ”
Maybe you should read a few history books. Then it would hurt less because you would gather some real facts. You could start with Martin Gilbert - World War II and this nice brochure from the Holocaust Memorial Museum:http://www.holocaust-trc.org/poles.htm
Poland was the first country to fight with the Nazis and the one with the biggest anti-Nazi underground. Hundreds of thousands of Poles found their way to different allied armies where they fought Hitler until the end - in response, the Germans killed around 2-3 millions non-Jewish Poles. Where is the "open-arms" welcome? As for the ghetto, I've never seen any argument that it could have succeeded and it's not because of Polish partisans that it failed. And did you hear about the 1944 Polish underground uprising in Warsaw? It cost the life of 200,000 non-Jewish Poles and still it failed, because even then, the Polish partisans did not have enough weapons.
I suspect that it's pointless to argue with you. I just want to make it clear that you're not impressing those who disagree with you with such absurd allegations.