The Polish government has called on Tucker Carlson, a conservative commentator, to apologize for his remarks about Adolf Hitler’s invasion of Poland and his critique of the United Kingdom’s role in World War II. Bogdan Klich, charge d’affaires at the Polish Embassy in Washington, D.C., accused Carlson of being “an apologist for Adolf Hitler” after the commentator questioned the UK’s decision to combat Nazi Germany. Efforts to get feedback from the Tucker Carlson Network are ongoing.

Statements by Tucker Carlson

In a podcast conversation with former British Cabinet minister Sir Jacob Rees-Mogg, Carlson asserted that Hitler had territorial grievances regarding land transferred to Poland after World War I. He questioned the UK’s involvement in the war against Nazi Germany. “Hitler said that 15 percent of Poland was once Germany and it was given to Poland at the Treaty of Versailles,” Carlson stated, referencing the 1919 treaty that ended World War I, “the idea that Hitler just randomly rolled into Poland is a lie.” He further mentioned that the UK’s participation in the war “had nothing to do with it all” and argued that the UK’s war effort “wasn’t as justified as it is often portrayed.”

Rees-Mogg countered Carlson’s statements, highlighting the UK’s role as a fundamental stand against evil and arguing that Britain’s actions were justified. When asked whether the UK benefitted from fighting Hitler, Rees-Mogg agreed, citing that otherwise, “we’d be speaking German.” Carlson dismissed this adding, “Who cares?…it would be nice to have at least a European language spoken in your country.” Rees-Mogg rebuffed, noting that Carlson was “verging on defending Hitler.”

Response from the Polish Embassy

In a statement dated October 5, Klich expressed outrage over the “false and deeply troubling statements” made during the podcast. He criticized Carlson’s claim about the territorial grievances as a “colossal insult” to war victims, including American servicemen who suffered during the conflict. The statement recalled that the UK and France had accepted Germany’s annexation of the Sudetenland in 1938, but by March 1939, German forces had invaded Czechoslovakia, and by September 1, 1939, Germany had invaded Poland, breaking a non-aggression pact with Warsaw from five years prior.

Klich emphasized that the Allied Forces’ declaration of war against Nazi Germany wasn’t just a political obligation but a necessity against Hitler’s conquest-driven ideology. Addressing Carlson, Klich insisted on retraction and a public apology, criticizing Carlson’s comments as misleading and disgraceful.

Additional Reactions

Senator Ted Cruz, a Texas Republican, and critic of Carlson, responded on social media, affirming, “Yes, Tucker, the UK is better off for winning WWII,” and added, “America is better off for winning WWII. And the world would be much worse off if the Nazis had won WWII. This is not complicated.”

The Polish Institute of Culture and Research in Berlin issued a statement remarking that providing apologia for Hitler and Nazi Germany encourages the misuse of historical grievances to justify current aggression. It emphasized that this stance undermines human rights and the core principles of a rules-based international order.

For more details on this story, contact Newsweek editors Ben Kelly and Sam Wilson.