The Russian invasion of Ukraine proves the mistakes of German policy over the last 30 years, critics say. Merkel’s policy is at the center of criticism.
Following the atrocities in Bhutan, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelesnky blamed Angela Merkel for her policy toward Russia during her tenure. He even invited the former chancellor to visit the devastated suburb of Kiev to see for himself, as the President of Ukraine stressed, “what has led the policy of concessions towards Russia for the last 14 years.”
Fourteen years ago, then-Chancellor Angela Merkel and then-French President Nicolas Sarkozy spoke out at a NATO summit in Bucharest against Ukraine’s NATO membership so as not to provoke Russia. Today, President Zelensky describes the decision as a “miscalculation” that has left Europe with “the worst war since the end of World War II”.
The Merkel government also ruled out sanctions against Russia after the annexation of Crimea in 2014 and gave the green light to the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline, which bypassed Ukraine. “How else can we interpret this attitude other than the tacit acceptance of a violent border shift by Moscow?” asks Henning Hoff of the German Foreign Policy Society.
Never has a Federal President been so strongly criticized by an ambassador
In an interview with the Tagesspiegel newspaper, Ukrainian Ambassador to Germany Andrig Melnik accused incumbent Federal President and Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier of treating “relations with Russia as” sacred, no matter what happens. important role”. Never before in Germany’s post-war history has the country’s first citizen been so strongly criticized by a foreign ambassador.
The criticism is not about individual politicians, but about German foreign policy, security policy and trade policy for the last 30 years. Ukrainian Ambassador Melnik sums up: “Too much dialogue and too little cruelty towards the Kremlin.”
Andrig Melnik’s assessment is shared by political scientist Stefan Birlink from Regensburg University. Speaking to DW, he said: “Ever since Putin took office, good, non-violent relations with Russia have been more important than Ukraine’s fate. This attitude has ultimately encouraged the Kremlin to invade Ukraine.”
In a similar style the policy towards Beijing
According to Stephen Birling, German policy towards China follows the same pattern: “Flattery with sought-after economic benefits, naive ideas about liberalizing an empire from abroad, concessions to respect for democratic values and human rights so as not to disturb the rulers.” European governments and Washington have been criticizing Germany’s policy towards Russia and China for years. But Berlin was not moved until the Russian army invaded Ukraine on February 24.
Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier publicly admitted on Tuesday after criticizing Ukrainian Ambassador Melnik “miscalculations” such as the construction of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline, which damaged Germany’s credibility.
According to expert Henning Hoff, the goal should now be: rapid de-dependence on fossil fuels, upgrading Germany as a major player at the military level depending on its weight in NATO and EU structures, and a ” common European policy towards Russia and China “.
Christoph Hasselbach
Edited by: Stefanos Georgakopoulos
Source: Deutsche Welle
Source: Capital
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