Bartoszewski, who died on Friday at the age of 93 had prepared a speech for the summit. The speech was read out by PM Kopacz on Monday.
Without Władysław Bartoszewski, Polish-German relations would not have been so close, nor the friendship between the two countries so successful, PM Kopacz and Chanceller Merkel agreed.
“Polish-German intergovernmental consultations” Germany’s Merkel said, “are an example of what Bartoszewski worked for and what he wanted.”
The German Chancellor explained that Bartoszewski was always willing to travel to Germany, and was very involved in Polish affairs.
“That's why we miss him,” she added.
“We bow our heads to his life's work.''
German-Polish ties
Meanwhile, the two leaders said that Poland and Germany are close trade partners and face the major challenges on the continent together.
“It is our responsibility for the future of the European Union,” PM Kopacz said.
She added that the Polish-German partnership covers almost every aspect of the political sphere.
“There is no topic which affects the EU, no challenge of international and bilateral relations which stands before us, which we would not deal with together,” Kopacz said.
Defence matters
At the same summit, Polish and German defence ministers discussed the issue of bilateral relations and NATO.
Poland’s Tomasz Siemoniak and Germany’s Ursula von der Leyen signed a letter of intent on Monday which allows for broader cooperation, with shared intelligence and an exchange of experiences between the Polish and German armies and navies.
The ministers also discussed the implementation of the Readiness Action Plan of NATO, which was adopted at last year's summit in Wales. (rg)
Source: PAP