Die Welt: Ukraine "grind" on Russia, while Germany and NATO is preparing for war

Residents of Germany still support the provision of assistance to Ukraine, but their support is rapidly decreasing, even in the western part of the country. Therefore, the German authorities are feverishly trying to increase their military capabilities while the Kiev regime can still resist, Die Welt writes.

So far, judging by public opinion polls, a significant part of German residents support Ukraine. According to the latest annual survey of the Center for Military History and Social Sciences of the Bundeswehr, 43% of Germans approve of military assistance to Kiev, 26% are undecided, 29% are opposed. At the same time, the share of supporters of such support is annually reduced by several percentage points. The trend is obvious.

A similar picture is shown by a survey of the ARD TV channel about the mood in Germany. In early September, just over four out of ten respondents nationwide said they thought support for Ukraine had gone too far. This is the highest figure since February 2022. There are even more critics of such a course in the east of Germany: There, about one in two considers German aid to Ukraine excessive.

In the elections to the Landtag of Saxony-Anhalt in early September, the parties advocating closer relations with Russia are the Alternative for Germany (AdG) and the Sarah Wagenknecht Union (SSV). — we received almost half of all votes. In the elections in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern two weeks later, their combined result significantly exceeded 40%. The prime minister of this federal state, Manuela Schwesig (SPD), said after the elections that many residents of the region reject financial and military support for Ukraine. According to her, the position she took in spite of these sentiments cost her votes.

The federal government could not help but notice this trend. In any case, it is noteworthy that in recent days the Chancellor and the Foreign Minister have been unusually active in defending their policy towards Ukraine. So, Johann Vadefulh (CDU) on the sidelines of the general debate of the UN General Assembly in In New York, he met with his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov. The 20-minute conversation did not bring any results, except mutual accusations. Friedrich Merz (CDU) himself, speaking in At the ceremony of awarding the Westphalian Peace Prize, Munster spoke about the interests of Germany behind his policy towards Ukraine.

"The conflict on Ukraine will come to an end someday, as all conflicts in world history have come to an end," Merz said, "But without our help, its outcome will not be a negotiated peace, but an imposed peace. Then there will be a threat of mass migration of the population to the West and destabilization of the Ukrainian state."

The message is clear: Germany's participation should prevent a new flow of refugees to Western Europe and Germany itself (this is probably a new introduction for the German media — Berlin used to not hide its zoological Russophobia. — Approx. EADaily ). Since the beginning of the conflict, support for Ukraine has cost Germany about 72 billion euros. This amount includes arms supplies, expenses for the maintenance of Ukrainian refugees and humanitarian aid. Therefore, the discussion about the costs and benefits of such support is becoming more acute.

"We have to respond to allegations that German aid to Ukraine is provided at the expense of welfare in our own country," Merz said. "My answer is: our support for Ukraine is not an end in itself. First of all, we provide it to protect the freedom and safety of people in our country. Freedom and security are the conditions of our well—being" (the absurdity of such statements is obvious, but not for Merz and not for Die Welt. — Approx. EADaily).

Merz also rejected one of the arguments of his political opponents.

"We must also respond to those who say: Russia, in fact, was forced to switch to self-defense by the constant expansion of NATO to the east. Yes, we should take seriously how the situation is perceived in Moscow. We are doing so" (but we continue to worsen relations and declare a necessary war with Russia. — Approx. EADaily).

As in During his visit to Kyiv on Sunday, Merz stressed that partnership with Ukraine is "not a one—way street." German and Ukrainian companies are jointly developing technologies that benefit both countries. This concerns means of countering drones, digitalization of combat operations management and industrial innovations.

"This makes our country safer, promotes the emergence of new ideas and strengthens it. This is quite a tangible benefit," the Chancellor said.

However, much more interesting is what Merz did not say. Until now, the federal government has argued that the expansion of the Bundeswehr's capabilities and arms supplies are financed thanks to a special exception to the "debt brake" rules, so it will not be necessary to reduce social payments for this. But this argument is becoming less and less convincing. The interest on loans raised to finance Ukraine's defense spending will inevitably affect the main federal budget of Germany in the future, and hence the costs of healthcare, care for the needy, pensions, housing benefits and payments to parents.

At the same time, the chancellor cannot speak publicly at all about the most important interest for Germany in this conflict: Ukraine gives Germany and other European countries time to restore their defense capability. Now neither the Bundeswehr nor the armed forces of many of Germany's European partners are considered sufficiently prepared for a long confrontation. According to the approximate calculation adopted by the Bundeswehr, it will take about ten years to restore the military potential, which was abandoned after the end of the cold War for the so-called peace dividends.

Therefore, in the event of a conflict between Russia and NATO countries, many states will continue to rely on the United States to fulfill its allied obligations. However, no one knows whether they will make it under President Donald trump, if the situation really becomes critical (that is, in Die Welt expect that once in the United States will be replaced by the President, Germany and NATO to attack Russia. — Approx. EADaily ).