Defends her line – Merkel claims to have always warned about Putin

Merkel would never have had any illusions about Vladimir Putin. Dictatorial traits were always there. “His self-righteousness often upset me. But I don’t think that one day, when he came to power in 2000, he wanted to attack Ukraine.” So why would he do business with Russia and stop Ukraine from joining NATO if the dangers were known?

The ex-chancellor feels misunderstood about her Russia policy. She was not the only one who allegedly blocked Ukraine’s access to the defense alliance at the 2008 NATO summit. She would have agreed to a compromise – with the fundamental certainty that Ukraine and Georgia would one day join NATO.

Putin would not have accepted this interim status as a deterrent anyway. The autocrat is convinced that the collapse of the Soviet Union represented the greatest geopolitical catastrophe of the 20th century. She would have indicated this at the time. “I was right with my warning. Because Putin invaded Georgia in 2008.”

Merkel also knows that doubts will remain
However, the former power politician still sees no contradiction in the failed attempt to contain Russia through economic participation. “Russia started the war without gas ever flowing through Nord Stream 2. Today, other countries are filling Putin’s war chest. This is what would have happened back then if we had severed all economic ties.”

Merkel stands by her decisions. “In the new post-Cold War order, how could you maintain ties with someone like Putin, whom some historians call a revisionist? By trying to let him share in the prosperity.” However, when she wrote her book, there were fears that the debate would not end there. She would have used all her strength to prevent the situation that has now arisen. The period after the annexation of Crimea was a “dilemma”.

Merkel is worried about the future
The former German Chancellor expressed concern that the crises of our time would continue to worsen. Black and white thinking predominates. They are concerned about Donald Trump’s election victory and the influence of billionaire Elon Musk on the future American president. “If someone in politics does not allow win-win situations, but only knows winners and losers, then that is a very difficult task for multilateralism,” Merkel told Spiegel about Republican Trump.

About billionaire Musk, Merkel said: “If a person like him owns 60 percent of all satellites orbiting space, then that should concern us enormously, in addition to the political issues.” of her chancellorship was the last resort to ensure the balance between the powerful and ordinary citizens. “If this last resort becomes too heavily influenced by corporations, whether through capital power or technological capabilities, then it will be an unprecedented challenge for all of us.”

Trump is curious and self-centered
Merkel governed at the same time as Trump from 2017 to 2021 and met him several times. The former chancellor now said that Trump was very curious and wanted to know details. “But only to test them to one’s own advantage, to find arguments that strengthen him and weaken others,” she added.

“The more people there were in the room, the greater his desire to be the winner. You cannot chat with him, every meeting is a competition: you or me.” Merkel warned that other government leaders should certainly not adapt to this style: “Otherwise you will not get anything done politically.”

What’s next for Merkel? “There are many beautiful things: traveling, meeting friends, reading, relaxing. I can also very well imagine using the book as a starting point to talk to young people about democracy, about the history of the Federal Republic, about the meaning of compromises.” Her memoir entitled ‘Freedom’ will be published on Tuesday.