Poland accepts German ambassador after long waiting period

After several months of waiting, the Polish government has approved the appointment of the designated German ambassador in Warsaw, Arndt Freytag von Loringhoven. This is what Poland’s Deputy Foreign Minister Szymon Szynkowski vel Sek told the PAP news agency on Monday evening. After the former ambassador Rolf Nikel retired at the end of June, his successor should actually have taken up his post already.

According to Polish media reports, there were reservations about the German diplomat because of his family background. According to these reports, the father of the designated ambassador, Bernd Freytag von Loringhoven, prepared the daily military briefing as an adjutant in Hitler’s Führer’s bunker from 1944 until the end of April 1945.

Poland’s deputy foreign minister commented on the special challenge that the new ambassador would have to face in view of Germany’s past. The crimes of World War II remained “a huge unhealed wound in Polish consciousness,” said Szynkowski vel Sek. “In this context, the position of Germany and German politicians is of particular importance.

On Tuesday, Poland will celebrate the 81st anniversary of the German National Socialists’ attack on its neighboring country, which began the Second World War on September 1, 1939.

Arndt Freytag von Loringhoven, who holds a doctorate in biochemistry, was Vice President of the German Federal Intelligence Service from 2007 to 2010 and German Ambassador to the Czech Republic from 2014 to 2016. Most recently, he worked as an intelligence coordinator for NATO.