text: FBI director James Comey has caused huge offense to a key U.S. ally by using language that suggested that Poland was an accomplice in the Holocaust. Poles are waiting to see if Comey would issue an apology — something that hadn't happened by late Monday. Polish Foreign Minister Grzegorz Schetyna said he expected him to say sorry so the matter can be settled. Comey said last week, 'In their minds, the murderers and accomplices of Germany, and Poland, and Hungary, and so many, many other places didn't do something evil. 'They convinced themselves it was the right thing to do, the thing they had to do. That's what people do. And that should truly frighten us.' FBI director James Comey, pictured at a news conference last month,  has caused huge offense to a U.S. ally by using language to suggest that Poles were accomplices in the Holocaust . Comey's comments are particularly offensive to Poles not only because they had no role in running Auschwitz and other death camps where Jews were murdered during World War II, but because they were themselves victims of the Third Reich. In all, 6 million Polish citizens were killed during the war, about half of them Jewish and the other half Christians, with many Polish priests, members of the intelligentsia and political resistance killed in Auschwitz and elsewhere. Poland also had a committed anti-Nazi resistance movement and Polish fighters fought alongside the Allies throughout the war. Poles see themselves as heroes of the war who have never been properly recognized, making comments like Comey's hurt even more. Comey originally delivered the remarks on Wednesday at the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in arguing for the importance of Holocaust education. The speech was adapted for an article published in The Washington Post on Thursday. U.S. Ambassador Stephen Mull attends ceremonies marking the 72nd anniversary of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, in front of the monument to the Heroes of the Ghetto, in Warsaw, Poland, on Sunday, April 19, 2015 . The Polish reaction was swift. On Sunday, the U.S. ambassador to Poland, Stephen Mull, was called to the Foreign Ministry in a formal act of protest on the 72nd anniversary of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising. Mull, a well-liked figure in Poland, went into damage-control mode. 'Saying that Poland and any other country other than Nazi Germany were responsible for the Holocaust is a mistake, is harmful and is offensive,' Mull said. 'Director Comey certainly did not mean to suggest that Poland was in any way responsible for those crimes.' In Washington, U.S. State Department spokeswoman Marie Harf later echoed that sentiment, saying that 'Poles certainly bore a huge brunt of the barbarism of Nazi Germany.' 'Director Comey certainly did not intend to suggest otherwise, did not intend to suggest that Poland was in some way responsible for the Holocaust,' she said. The FBI had no immediate comment on the matter. Polish leaders all had something to say about the controversy. 'To those who are incapable of presenting the historic truth in an honest way, I want to say that Poland was not a perpetrator but a victim of World War II,' Prime Minister Ewa Kopacz said on Sunday. 'I would expect full historical knowledge from officials who speak on the matter.' Not all Poles behaved heroically during the war. Anti-Semitism was deep in the 1930s and some Poles pointed Jews out to the Nazis, who often could not tell Jew from non-Jew. There were also some cases of Poles murdering Jews during the war. But collaborating was never the official state position, as it was with Vichy France, for instance. In fact, during the war, the Polish underground army had a program to save Jews, called Zegota. And Poles caught denouncing Jews to the Nazis were even killed by the Polish resistance. President Barack Obama caused a similar controversy in 2012 when he used the wording 'Polish death camp.' Poles feel that that wording implies Polish complicity, and Obama later expressed 'regret' for the gaffe. 'In referring to 'a Polish death camp' rather than 'a Nazi death camp in German-occupied Poland,' I inadvertently used a phrase that has caused many Poles anguish over the years and that Poland has rightly campaigned to eliminate from public discourse around the world,' Obama wrote at the time. 'I regret the error and agree that this moment is an opportunity to ensure that this and future generations know the truth.' The entrance to the Auschwitz death camp in Oswiecim, Poland. There was a Polish program to save Jews, called Zegota, and Poles caught denouncing Jews to the Nazis were even killed by the Polish resistance .
target: FBI director James Comey suggested in remarks last week that Poles were accomplices during the holocaust .
  Comey's comments are offensive to Poles as they had no role in running death camps and were themselves victims of the Third Reich .
  Poles see themselves as heroes of the war who have never been properly recognized, making the comments yet more hurtful .
  The remarks came shortly before the 72nd anniversary of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, which was commemorated on Sunday .
  The U.S. ambassador to Poland, Stephen Mull, was called to the Foreign Ministry in a formal act of protest .
  The incident echoes a gaffe by President Obama in 2012 when he referred to 'a Polish death camp' - he offered his regrets for the error .