Poland wants Germany to issue a formal declaration that claims by ethnic Germans who owned real estate in modern-day Poland prior to World War II have no basis in international law, Polish Foreign Minister Anna Fotyga told Polish Radio Thursday, according to DPA. Fotyga said the same applies to German cultural artifacts found in Poland after WWII. Under a 1946 law, any German cultural artifacts found in Poland after the war belong to Poland, Fotyga said, stressing Germany has no legal claim to these items. Poland will talk with Germany about the issue, but will not be "pushed to the wall," the minister said. Fotyga said Poland would also be presenting its claims against Germany for damages stemming from Nazi Germany's 1939-1945 WWII invasion and occupation of Poland. In 1944, retreating German forces were ordered by German dictator Adolf Hitler to destroy Polish cities. The Nazis left 90 per cent of the capital Warsaw in ruins.
