Former German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s remarks have sparked a storm of indignation, with Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna describing them as shameless and wrong, ERR News reports.
The minister said the war was caused by Russian dictator Vladimir Putin’s inability to come to terms with the collapse of the Soviet Union, the West’s willingness to negotiate with the aggressor and the long-standing focus on Putin’s actions. He said: “In our region, the true nature of Russia was recognized early on and warnings were issued about the dangers emanating from it.” Tsahkna said that most Western countries chose to ignore the warnings, even after Putin openly announced his vision and goals at the Munich Security Conference in 2007 in a speech imbued with nostalgia for the lost Soviet power.
The minister stressed that neither the war in Georgia in 2008 nor the annexation of Crimea in 2014 provoked a reaction and condemnation.
Instead, everyone saw efforts to restore relations and establish dialogue with Russia.
Tsahkna pointed out that under Merkel, Germany miscalculated the true price of economic cooperation with Russia, and that by celebrating the opening of the Nord Stream pipeline, Merkel had contributed to energy dependence. Ukraine and Georgia were also left out of the 2008 Bucharest summit. The Estonian said: “All these mistakes made over the years emboldened Russia and gave it the confidence to decide, in early 2022, to launch a full-scale aggression.”
The politician emphasized that these are lessons that bear repeating – Russia only understands the language of force. Therefore, international isolation and economic pressure must be continued, and support for Ukraine must be continued.
Estonia is currently working to ensure that the 19th package of sanctions against Russia is approved. Tsahkna pointed out that Europe is currently moving in the right direction, including Germany, which, under the leadership of Chancellor Friedrich Merz, has decided to take decisive steps to support Ukraine and strengthen its defense capabilities. He recalled Merz’s statement in the summer that Germany had ignored the Baltic states’ statements about Russia’s imperialist policy for too long.
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