Posted on 03/12/2022 5:52:55 AM PST by Oldeconomybuyer
Berlin (AFP) – Up to the final hours before Russia began its invasion of Ukraine, former chancellor Angela Merkel had been touted as the person favoured by Germans to try to talk President Vladimir Putin out of the conflict.
But as Russian bombs fell on Ukrainian cities, a shadow has fallen on Merkel's 16 years in office, with some observers now questioning if her detente policies with Putin had in fact left Germany, and Europe, vulnerable.
Once hailed as the leader of the free world, the veteran centre-right leader has been accused by some of increasing Europe's reliance on Russian energy and neglecting Germany's defence in what appeared to be a devastating miscalculation of Putin's ambitions.
Merkel's push for diplomacy and bids to bind regimes to treaties and business contracts now look like "an error", conservative daily Die Welt, long critical of Merkel, charged.
"What Germany and Europe has experienced over the last days is nothing short of a reversal of Merkel's policies of guaranteeing peace and freedom through treaties with despots," it wrote.
Over the last decade, Germany's energy reliance on Russia rose from 36 percent of its total gas imports in 2014 to 55 percent currently, with the deal for the controversial Nord Stream 2 signed after the Kremlin's annexation of Crimea from Ukraine.
That has left Germany nearly helpless to follow allies like the United States and impose an oil and gas embargo against Russia.
(Excerpt) Read more at france24.com ...
This points to all the global warming concern being more important than defense and energy independence.
Liberal thinking is fundamentally flawed.
Would it be safe to say that Merkel screwed up?
Article mentions Merkel as “Center right”. That must mean something entirely different in Europe than center right does here in U.S. ?????
She’s a KGB asset like many Western politicians and media operatives for the past 100 years.
Germany stopped using coal then shut down their nuclear reactors so only Russian gas was left. Not a coincidence.
Trump warned Germany and NATO but whined and cried about Trump being mean. Germany floated the idea of a EU army but then realized they have few men lol. Then said maybe non EU residents could join the army..they need to freeze and starve a few years.
Yes, Stalin’s last act against the Huns!
If she wanted to make Germany prey to Russia ... she couldn’t have done a better job.
Pfffft. She wouldn't even adhere to her own country's commitment to spend 2% of GDP on defense.
Merkel’s legacy is letting in one million Muslim military-aged men to prey on the German population, especially women and children.
She should be tried and hanged as a war criminal.
Merkel was awful, not sure if the Germans recognize that.
Excellent summary in just a few words.
Angela Merkel, East German. That’s all ya need to know.
In other words, Trump was right!
Ask her again why she closed down her nuclear power plants.
The Germans have been utter scheisse since the late 60s. Freeloaders on defense, Gaia worship, seeking to undermine American policy at every turn whether it made any sense or not, appeasing the Commies, making themselves utterly dependent on Russia and doing so with an incredible amount of smug arrogance the whole time.
Now to my utter shock and disbelief the new chancellor…..from the SPD even!…. Has just repudiated almost all of that. About 60 years worth of German policies flushed down the toilet. I’m still extremely suspicious as to whether or not they actually have somehow miraculously found a working pair of testicles.
It does. Their center Right is our Left of about 20 years ago. Their Left is like our current Left ie complete lunatics.
Right; an American friend living in Italy during the Clinton years described how he was viewed as “right wing” over there.
She was the leader of a coalition government that included Social Democrats, and at times the Green Party. It was not her idea to shut the nuclear plants. It was and IS a popular idea among voters in Germany, and among her coalition partners. It’s something she really had little choice about since most of it was enacted before she became Chancellor. She explicitly opposed the policy when Gerd Schroeder announced it in 2003.
Maybe Merkel (from Eastern Germany) was/has been a KGB plant all along???
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