Greece has demanded reparations from Germany, BBC reports Tuesday, demanding nearly €279 Billion ($303 Billion) in compensation for the Nazi German occupation of the Greek isles during the 1940s.
Far-left ruling party Syriza has demanded the reparation money as it struggles to repay a tidal wave of debt which has plunged Greece into austerity mode and uncertainty.
"According to our calculations, the debt linked to German reparations is 278.7 billion euros," Greek's Deputy Finance Minister, Dmitris Mardas, told a parliamentary committee responsible for investigating Greece's financial crisis.
The reparations include repayment for a €10.3 billion ($11.2 billion in 2015 dollars; $862 million in 1945 dollars) "occupation loan" Athens was forced to pay to the Nazis.
Berlin paid Greece $25 million ($220 million in 2015) in war damages in 1953, and an additional 115 million Deustchmarks in 1963 ($67 million in 1963 dollars; $511 million in 2015).
Greece owes the International Monetary Fund (IMF) some $20 billion.