The first time the two met was the January 2006: the Russian president in the Kremlin, with a malicious move as a former agent of the Kgbgave the newly elected German Chancellor a huge one plush dog. She knew that dogs were his greatest fear. Despite that episode, despite Crimea, despite Navalny and another series of Russian provocations, for 15 long years their diplomatic relationship has always remained alive. Today, more than a month after the invasion of Ukraine, the Germany she finds herself struggling with the legacy he left her Angela Merkel: the press and politics are wondering if their relationship with Vladimir Putinthe underestimation of his intentions, was “his biggest mistake“.
The j’accuse final came through the mouth of the German vice-chancellor, Robert Habeck: “Let’s see the errors the past. Germany has put itself in a situation of strong addiction from point of energetic view“And the fact of having bet so much on Russia” is difficult understandable“, Said the exponent of the Greens opening the Berlin Energy Transition Dialogues. “The energy policy it is always also the politics of power and of safety“, Remarked the Minister of Economy and Climate. “That Germany has become dependent for the 50% from gas it is hard to understand ”, explained Habeck again. “Now we have to admit that we were wrong “. And change course: “Germany and Europe, step by step, are now making themselves more independent from Russian fossils “.
The burden of Ostpolitik – The German Vice-Chancellor speaks in the plural, because the responsibilities do not lie with Merkel alone. As Hans Monath recalls in an article for the newspaper The daily mirrorthe SPD – for years an ally of the government in the Big coalition – has many faults: “TheOstpolitik Of Willy Brandt it has been elevated to an end in itself “. Without forgetting Merkel’s predecessor, the Social Democrat Gerhard Schröderwhich turned Ostpolitik into a personal interest, first becoming the architect of Nord Stream 1 then the great puppeteer of the Nord Stream 2. The former chancellor became the lobbyist of Moscow in Europe, securing, among others, a position on the board of the Russian state energy giant Rosneftwithout ever distancing himself from his friend Putin. The mega-project to double the flow of Russian gas to Germanybypassing theUkraine from the Baltichowever, is the symbol of the political responsibilities that are now attributed to Merkel.
The defense of Nord Stream 2 – The existing gas pipeline and the recently completed one – before stop decided by Olaf Scholz – raised political concerns right from the start: in Ukraine, in the Baltic states and in the east of the European Union. Christian Feld clearly underlines this in his analysis for the portal of the daily News, the news of the first German network. “When it came to Nord Stream 2, Merkel stayed loyal to the story that it was a project purely economic. It ignored warnings that energy is an important part of foreign policy ”. The pipeline, in addition to tying Berlin hand and foot to Moscow, was part of a design widerwhich would effectively turn Germany into a hub europeo of Russian gas. But, Feld continues, there were many reasons that over the years should have convinced Merkel at least to suspend the project. Yet this did not happen even after the annexation of the Crimea.
Change through trade – Because the chancellor allowed Germany to become so addicted from Russian fossils? This is the question that is now being asked Press German. His Focus editorialist Jan Fleischhauer even talks about “a toxic inheritance“, But perhaps the heaviest attack came from Brussels on Monday: the European version of Politico he defined the German politicians, Merkel in the lead, “the useful idiots Of Putin“. The article signed by Matthew Karnitschnig puts in line the mistakes made in the sixteen years of the Merkel era: the Nord Stream 2, the devotion to Ostpolitik, but also the belief that the change through tradechange through business, it would have been enough to avoid an aggressive drift in Putin’s foreign policy. Merkel, we also read on the website of the daily News, she was convinced that economic convergence would lead to the success of her strategy. This, at least so far, has not happened.
I mea culpa of his colleagues – These are the mistakes that are suddenly recognized by those who for years were Merkel’s traveling companions and who now “ask themselves painful questions”, says Tina Hildebrandt in the weekly The time. The list of MEA culpa is long: Johann Wadephuldeputy head of the CDU, said that everyone “should reflect critically if Putin’s aggressive intentions have been underestimated”, even if “there was an inability Of prepare properly to the negative scenario that has occurred “. Thomas of Maiziereone of the historical ministers of the Merkel era, said: “We have misjudged aggression of this man “. Even the former finance minister, the hawk Wolfgang Schäublehe admitted: “” I was wrong, we were all wrong“. While Friedrich Merznow head of the CDU and internal enemy of Merkel, took advantage of this and declared that the war “has torn to pieces decades of German and European foreign and security policy ”.
Diplomatic skills – “The federal government didn’t see the risk of an enormous dependence on fossil fuels from Russia, and perhaps he did not want to see it, ”writes Feld again. But she also acknowledges that Merkel has obtained important diplomatic results from her relationship with Putin. Among these, also the format Normandy which led to the Minsk agreements of February 2015: a merit of the diplomatic skills of the Chancellor. She must be acknowledged that she was able to keep open a channel of communication between the West and Moscow, without which Putin could even have decided to act before her. The common past in the Ddr – Merkel was born and raised in Germany Isthe Russian president worked on it until the fall of the Wall – allowed the two to have a relationship privileged.
The absence of a vision – Putin can speak German, Merkel knows a little Russian: Terpeniye (patience) is his favorite word. He made use of it several times during his visits to the Kremlin, in order to avoid the definitive tear. Even in the name of that coping with the pastelaboration of the past, which makes Germany feel a historical debt against Russia for the crimes committed during the Second World War. Still, he writes the He does (Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung), now German foreign policy should stop appearing in Moscow as a “mixture of naivetyromance about Russia e guilt complexes“. Yet the Chancellor’s choices, in particular in the field of energy policy, were supported and endorsed by the same Cdu (his party), by the allies of the Spd and also fromGerman industryas Paolo Valentino recalled on Corriere della Sera. The journalist in his book Merkel’s age he already pointed out the real limitation of the former chancellor: “She is a pragmatic leader, who does not have one structured vision of Germany and Europe “. Just that lack of vision of long period that today, with hindsight, comes to her disputed in Germany regarding i relationships with Putin’s Russia.
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