Opinion: How Germany went wobbly on the West

[TomSea]

How Germany went wobbly on the West
John Vinocur

If there’s a moment that betrays Germany’s wobbly geopolitical instincts, it is Berlin's we-won't-think-of-fighting response to Russian military maneuvers that followed Moscow’s takeover of Crimea.

About three weeks after Russia’s flag was hoisted over Crimea’s parliament building in 2014, up to 40,000 of its troops were reportedly massing along Ukraine’s eastern border. U.S. General Phillip Breedlove, NATO’s supreme allied commander in Europe, speaking at a German Marshall Fund event in Brussels, described the build-up as "very, very sizeable, very, very ready" and "very worrisome."

German Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen, a Christian Democrat, responded with solidarity and concern, saying that it is important for NATO countries bordering Russia that the alliance "show its presence" there.

Read more at: https://www.politico.eu/article/germany-nato-russia-ukraine-crimea-west-defense-army-military/