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Germany’s federal parliament, the Bundestag, has held a debate on Polish-German relations, with politicians from all parties hailing Poland’s growing importance – and some even holding it up as a “model” to follow.
The discussion was held to mark the 35th anniversary of the Treaty of Good Neighbourship and Friendly Cooperation signed in June 1991, which marked a breakthrough moment for two countries that have a difficult history.
“When we look at our large eastern neighbour today, 35 years after the signing of the treaty, we see something impressive…a modern, well-organised, self-confident and strong country,” said Knut Abraham of the centre-right Christian Democratic Union (CDU), the party of German Chancellor Friedrich Merz.
“Today, Germany and Poland act as equal partners in the EU and NATO. For some time Poland has no longer been a junior partner. In many ways, it has even become a role model,” added Abraham, who is the German government’s coordinator for cooperation with Poland.
That sentiment was echoed, though from a different perspective, by Alexander Wolf of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD), which is the largest opposition party. He likewise declared that “Poland can serve as a model for us”, in particular when it comes to “the defence of our own interests”.
Wolf noted that Poland has built “arguably the largest and most powerful army of all EU member states” and “is considered by Washington to be the most reliable partner” in Europe.
Meanwhile, Poland’s economy is booming thanks “not only to sound economic and defence policies, but also and above all a sound migration policy” of the type that “the AfD also demands for Germany”.
Wolf condemned German media and politicians who accuse Poland of “narrow-mindedness and xenophobia” when in fact all it has done is “what any sensible country, not consumed by self-loathing, would do: protecting its own borders and its own country”.
Poland has in fact had among the highest levels of immigration in the European Union over the last decade. However, most arrivals have come from eastern European countries , particularly Ukraine and Belarus.
Meanwhile, Poland has also implemented tough measures to prevent irregular migrants – who are mainly from Asia and Africa – crossing the border from Belarus.
The AfD has also enjoyed uneasy relations with Poland. Last year, one of its co-leaders, Tino Chrupalla, suggested that Poland is as much of a threat to Germany as Russia is. This year, a senior AfD figure called for Warsaw to pay Germany reparations for the sabotage of the Nord Stream pipelines.
The number of foreign workers in Poland rose 7.2% last year to reach 1.14 million.
Immigrants now make up almost 7% of all workers. While Ukrainians remain by far the largest group, the fastest-growing nationalities last year were Colombians and Indians https://t.co/E0LNJXyyTx
— Notes from Poland 🇵🇱 (@notesfrompoland) June 9, 2026
During the debate, speakers from all parties other than the AfD commented upon the history of German aggression and oppression against Poles, in particular the brutal occupation of World War Two, which resulted in the deaths of around six million Polish citizens.
“German responsibility for the suffering that Poland experienced through the Nazi war of annihilation is and remains part of our history,” said Johannes Schraps of the centre-left Social Democratic Party (SPD), which rules in coalition with the CDU.
“That is precisely why reconciliation between Germany and Poland…is one of the greatest European achievements of recent decades,” he added.
Last year, the Bundestag adopted a motion calling on the German government to move ahead with longstanding plans to establish a memorial in Berlin to Polish victims of the German-Nazi occupation. All parties supported the measure apart from the AfD.
Germany’s parliament has passed a motion calling on the government to establish a permanent memorial in Berlin to Polish victims of the German-Nazi occupation.
The measure was supported by all parties apart from the far-right AfD https://t.co/8dk0ZSpmjJ
— Notes from Poland 🇵🇱 (@notesfrompoland) December 3, 2025
Paul Ziemiak of the CDU, who was born in Poland before moving to Germany as a young child, noted that the history of German repression of Poles goes back even further, including the period in which Prussia partitioned Poland alongside Russia and Austria.
“Anyone who speaks of Polish sensitivities today, in light of the discussion about border shifts in Europe and the security needs of our eastern neighbours, has no understanding of the trauma of an entire nation and of European history,” said Ziemiak.
Katrin Göring-Eckardt of Alliance…
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