In response to the war in Ukraine, Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) has called for a “geopolitical European Union”.
The EU must close its ranks in all areas in which it has previously disagreed – “e.g. on migration policy, on building a European defense, on technological sovereignty and democratic resilience,” wrote Scholz in a guest article for the “Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung”. Monday. He announced concrete proposals from the federal government “in the next few months”.
The Chancellor called for an end to “selfish blockades of European decisions by individual member states”. In foreign policy, for example, the EU can no longer afford national vetoes if it wants to continue to be heard in a world of competing great powers.
Scholz described the EU as the “lived antithesis of imperialism and autocracy”, which is why it is a thorn in the side of those in power like Russia’s President Vladimir Putin. Disunity and dissent between the member states weakened the EU, which is why they had to act as one. “Letting Putin get away with it would mean that violence can break the law with virtually no consequences. Then ultimately our own freedom and security would also be in danger,” said Scholz.
Scholz also advocated a “new global cooperation between democracies” that had to go beyond the West. In the contribution, the Chancellor reiterated that Germany would support Ukraine for as long as necessary. This applies “economically, humanitarianly, financially and through the delivery of weapons”.