And a transatlantic break will be a regime-saving gift for Vladimir Putin. If our goal is to help Ukraine recover its territorial integrity and sovereignty, losing Germany means losing Europe. Next in the chain is politicians who go wobbly. The Handelsblatt, Germany’s leading financial paper, says recession is not a matter of “if” but “for how long.” Jobs will be lost, companies will be hammered, consumers will be hurt. ( EU inflation is at 8.9%.) Deutsche Bank is warning that the country is on the brink of recession. If the German economy - Europe’s largest - goes into freefall, the rest of Europe is toast. Russian oil executive and Putin critic dead after mysterious six-story fallįeds raid Russian oligarch’s NYC apartment, Hamptons mansionĬhildren head back to school in Ukraine as war rages on UN inspectors reach Ukraine nuke plant after shelling delay Alas and bewilderingly, no German party supports such a step at this time. Of course, Germans could revert to nuclear power. Germany has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with five other European Union countries (all in Central and Eastern Europe) for intensive cooperation in the event that Russia precipitates full-on blackouts this year. In Kyiv, October is expected to bring daytime highs in the 50s with overnight lows in the low 40s. Jittery Germans, anxious about a winter that can start as early as October, have been dimming street lamps this summer and have ceased illuminating important monuments. Germans find themselves in a predicament of their own making: They’re starting to see the consequences of energy dependence on Russia. Oh, and Gabriel - another Schröder protégé - now chairs the prestigious think tank Atlantik-Brücke, charged with promoting “German-American understanding.” There’s a vibrant pro-Russian network in Berlin.Įnter industry and Germany’s energy conundrum. But Plötner served as chief of staff to current President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, another Social Democrat, who was Schröder’s right hand for many years. In June, Scholz’s foreign policy adviser, Jens Plötner, argued for improving relations with Russia (and China, too). Former Chancellor Gerhard Schröder, who’s been doing Putin’s bidding at Nord Stream, Rosneft and Gazprom, is still welcome in the Social Democratic party. German politics is wired to favor accommodation and appeasement. He also overlooked that Germany’s Disneyland fantasies about Kremlin behavior affected other Eastern European partners and their energy needs, too.īiden must stop Germany and France from wavering on Ukraine “Even in the darkest hours of the Cold War, Russia respected its contracts,” Germany’s then foreign minister, Sigmar Gabriel, said just after the 2014 invasion of Ukraine - though Russia turned off gas to Ukraine in 20. “Trust but verify” has never been part of the German policymaker’s DNA. The Nord Stream pipelines have been a continuation of this deeply flawed premise. The old West Germany made itself dependent on Soviet gas, arguing that pumping money into Moscow coffers would somehow democratize the totalitarian state. Since the 1970s, Berlin has often prioritized Russian interests over Central and Eastern European concerns. REUTERS/Thilo Schmuelgenīigger picture: Germany has always had an Eastern European blind spot. The Cologne Cathedral and other monuments in Germany have turned off lights at night to conserve energy. Since Scholz’s February speech, the term “ Scholzing” has become a common expression in Ukraine: It means promising something repeatedly without delivering on the promise. Germany has already been dragging its feet on military aid for Kyiv. The Biden administration must help stiffen its backbone. If Berlin abandons the Ukrainian cause, we have a transatlantic nightmare. Watch for the German Chancellery to support phony peace plans and partition of Ukraine if Russian President Vladimir Putin suddenly sues for peace.
Anxiety over inflation and talk of recession are in the air. Now, six months into Russia’s invasion, the Germans are jittery. But Scholz made his pledge only three days into the Russia-Ukraine war, and no one in Germany or elsewhere, for that matter, expected the conflict to drag on. A transformation of German foreign policy was afoot the leader of a party addicted to détente suddenly promised $100 billion for defense. What a celebration it was in winter, when Germany’s Chancellor Olaf Scholz delivered his “Zeitenwende” speech.
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