Wednesday of this week is likely to be a historic day in the history of the Greek parliament. After a twelve-hour debate, the deputies passed the report of a commission that meticulously listed the war damage caused by Germany. Accordingly, including the forced loan to the Nazis, claims of the Greeks against Germany in the amount of more than 300 billion euros.

From April 1941 to September 1944, the German occupiers had killed around 300,000 Greek nationals and carried out numerous massacres, for example in Lyngiades, Distomo, Kalavryta, Kandanos or Viannos. In 1942, the Greek central bank also had to grant a compulsory loan, which was then estimated at just under 500 million Reichsmarks and today would make up some billion euros with interest.

At the same time, by adopting the report, the Parliament gave the Greek government the mandate to use all the legal and diplomatic registers at its disposal so that Germany would recognize reparations payments. Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras assured MEPs that he would exhaust all opportunities.

"This is an important day for Greece in the struggle for a fair compensation of German debt," said Aristomenis Syngelakis from the Greek Committee for Reparations claims to the SPIEGEL. The German government would do well to give up its "unacceptable and arrogant" position as soon as possible.

Verbal note to Maas

The Commission had been working on the report since 2016, and actually wanted to present it much earlier. But Tsipras had prevented the passage in parliament at that time with reference to the difficult situation after the debt crisis.

Now the head of government said that Greece is no longer dependent on the European Union's financial aid programs. In this respect, no one can claim that Athens wants to offset its debts with reparations claims against Germany. Critics accuse Tsipras against voting on the upcoming elections to the European Parliament. In addition, a number of polls have been scheduled in Greece this year. In October, citizens also vote on the composition of the Greek Parliament in Athens.

As a first step Tsipras now wants to send a so-called verbal note to Foreign Minister Heiko Maas, which lists the "inalienable claims" and asks the German government to start bilateral negotiations. The roundtables, it is said, could be divided into four chapters.

  • Reparation payments for the damage caused by German soldiers
  • Compensation for victims of war crimes and their relatives
  • The repayment of the compulsory loan including interest
  • The return of stolen art treasures and archaeological finds

However, hardly anyone thinks that the Federal Government agrees to negotiate in Greece. Government spokesman Steffen Seibert had finally confirmed the Berlin position shortly before the resolution was passed. One knows "the great guilt and the great suffering" which Germany brought to Greece in times of National Socialism, he explained. On the question of reparations but nothing has changed in the attitude of Germany. The government regards the issue as "legally and politically settled", Seibert continued.

If it sticks to it, Athens wants to follow SPIEGEL information first different legal ways: with a complaint before the International Court of Justice in The Hague and with the invocation of the International Court of Arbitration in London. But it would be necessary to overcome numerous legal traps, which is why experts judge the chances of success rather skeptical.

Expropriations are discussed

Another possibility would be to confiscate German assets in Greece. The then Attorney General Nikos Paraskevopoulos had threatened this once before. As a precedent could serve for the compensation of the victims of Distomo. The Supreme Court recently upheld a 1997 ruling that awarded the survivors 28 million euros. However, a garnishment would have to be approved by the Ministry of Justice.

But so far no Greek government has dared to take this step, for fear of endangering relations with Germany as a lender and trading partner or scare German tourists. But this worry seems to have diminished meanwhile. As SPIEGEL learned from informed sources, government officials and parliamentarians have been discussing for some time how expropriations of German goods could be implemented.

Such a move would undoubtedly weigh heavily on relations between Berlin and Athens, as the hardliners are well aware. Therefore, they are only the last step if all attempts by diplomatic and legal means have previously failed.

Previously, the Greeks want to present their claims in the new EU Parliament, which will be elected on 26 May. At the same time, they want to promote their cause to other governments in Europe. Moreover, an information campaign should ensure that the Germans assert that the demands of the Greeks are justified.