Polish President makes a statement on the Holocaust

Poles took part in the Holocaust tragedy though those were the criminal actions in which Polish authorities were never involved. Yesterday’s landmark statement by the President Lech Kaczyński may be interpreted as another step in relations between Poland and Israel.
A 65th anniversary of the Uprising in the Warsaw Ghetto and a visit of Israeli president Peres encouraged yesterday the Polish President to utter the words that many Israelis have been waiting to hear: that Jews were the integral part of Polish society, and Poles are not entirely blameless in the tragic times of Holocaust. , There were acts which I would define as criminal ones. I do not negate it; however, none of Polish authorities took actions against our Jewish co-citizens, or people of Jewish decent who were not citizens of Poland, which would led them to death’- said Lech Kaczyński after the meeting with Peres. Kaczyński added ‘There was anti-Semitism in Poland, but it had nothing in common with genocide.
President Peres admitted yesterday: ‘I believe that Poland and Israel are politically close’. He showed his appreciation to the way our country commemorated the Jewish heroes.
‘I want to thank Polish nation for taking part in the sadness of Jewish nation’.