Posted on 07/11/2018 10:13:17 AM PDT by CondoleezzaProtege
Angela Merkel appeared to hit back at US President Donald Trump's claim that "Germany is a captive of Russia" by drawing on her own upbringing in Soviet-controlled East Germany.
"I wanted to say that, because of current events, I have witnessed this myself, that a part of Germany was controlled by the Soviet Union. And I am very happy that we are today unified in freedom as the Federal Republic of Germany," she said in an arrival statement at the NATO Summit Wednesday.
Merkel, who was born in Hamburg in 1954, has spoken on numerous occasions about her upbringing under Soviet occupation.
"The first political event from my childhood that I remember distinctly is the building of the Berlin Wall 50 years ago. I was 7 years old at the time. Seeing grown-ups, even my parents, so stunned that they broke out in tears, shook me to the core. My mother's family, for example, was divided by the building of the Wall," she said in remarks upon receiving the US Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2011.
"I grew up in the part of Germany that was not free, the German Democratic Republic. For many years I dreamed of freedom, just as many others did -- also of the freedom to travel to the United States," she said then.
Although she did not mention the US President by name in her NATO statement, Merkel's comments seemed to be a direct repudiation of Trump's earlier remarks, in which he maligned Germany for getting natural gas from Russia.
"Germany is a captive of Russia," Trump said. "It's very inappropriate."
"I think it's something that NATO has to look at," Trump said. "Germany is totally controlled by Russia."
(Excerpt) Read more at cnn.com ...
One cannot stress enough how important it is that these dialogues about history are being aired out in the open like this.
Far too many Europeans forget the enormous sacrifice Americans made on their behalf and that their freedoms today are a direct consequence of our (initially reluctant) participation in combatting the forces of totalitarianism, which threatened to swallow the continent and ultimately the world (Had Soviet Russia had its way.)
Every major conflict we see today even outside of Europe, has to be understood through this lens, from the Middle East and Afghanistan, to the remaining socialist enclaves of Cuba and Venezuela in Latin America, to nuclear North Korea and tyrannical China, etc...
The world, including Germany, would be a much different place had the U.S. led West retreated in the 20th Century.
I’m no expert on this... if fact I’m not as smart as these two bit politician, but I know this...
If my country is importing 70% + of it’s natural gas from Russia, and Russia gets mad a me, for what ever reason, they can shut off my gas....Then what?
These people are foolish....
Actually, Germany and the rest of western Europe was bought by the Saudis, and they are taking possession of it with Merkle’s active participation.
We have NATO to protect the west form a Russian attack, but then she goes ahead and relies on Russia’s energy. In essence all Russia has to do is turn off their pipeline and cripple Germany , so exactly why the hell do we still have NATO?
Germany is always a problem in Europe.
So, given her experience of growing up in a Germany under Russian occupation, how is it that Merkel wants to flood Germany and the rest of Europe with fake Islamonazi refugees who make the Russians seem ultra civilized by comparison?
Not just witnessed. Collaborated.
” ‘I have witnessed’ Germany under Soviet control”
And still she did not Learn anything!!!
There isn’t a snowball’s chance in hell, I’d sign off on my nation getting it’s most vital Winter energy needs, from Russia.
What’s Germany’s back-up plan, stock up on coffins for three quarters of their populace?
She was a part of that Soviet control.
“I have witnessed this myself, that a part of Germany was controlled by the Soviet Union.”
Merkel witnessed it when she was a STASI agent.
She’s one of them, Jim.
And she LIKED it.
He touched a nerve.
Indeed. Recall that the US embargoed oil shipments to Japan in the summer of 1941.
In this case, Russia can shut off shipments to Germany at any time, “due to technical difficulties.”
Merkel better understand Trump will not be committing the United States to a “Berlin Airlift” of natural gas.
There are very few attitudes as vile as ingratitude. I would like to think the best of West Europeans and assume they speak out of ignorance but it seems to be more a matter of entitlement born of hubris.
The Barcelona Declaration. See link
Well an honest good question or 2 would be:
-does Germany have other natgas options? (Or other energy options viable now?)
-what do other neighboring nations do for natgas, and what is the context of their capabilities or options?
That really wasn’t necessary.
Yes...shut down all your nuke and coal power plants and let the Russians control most of your energy!
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