Putin can be happy in the Kremlin
Before the anniversary of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, appeals for immediate negotiations and for peace are piling up in Germany. In the cacophony, it is forgotten that the alleged war criminal president does not want peace.
The German philosopher Jürgen Habermas has published a “Plea for Negotiations” and criticizes the “bellicarian tones” of Ukraine’s supporters.
Foto: Frank Rumpenhorst (AP, Keystone)
Who is against peace, who wouldn’t rather have negotiations than more war? As the anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine approaches, calls for an end to the fighting are growing louder. The great German intellectual Jürgen Habermas launched a “plea for negotiations” in the “Süddeutsche Zeitung”. The old feminist Alice Schwarzer and the left-wing politician Sahra Wagenknecht quickly collected half a million signatures under their “Manifesto for Peace”.
In the Kremlin, the suspected war criminal president can be happy. The cacophony in the talk shows and feuilletons distracts attention from the fact that the Russian armed forces are preparing a massive new major offensive. Can there be compromise at all when one country invades another for no reason? Exactly what the intellectuals and national pacifists want to negotiate remains nebulous anyway.
No wonder, since the Russian president and his propagandists make it clear every day that they deny Ukraine’s identity and right to exist. Nevertheless, the Bonn professor Ulrike Guérot casually calls for a deal that also “makes Vladimir Putin happy”. Jürgen Habermas relies on a “face-saving compromise” for both sides.
The man in the Kremlin saw every time confirmation that he was pushing ahead with his imperial plans.
Should Ukraine give up 20 percent of its territory, or can it be a little less? It’s not the case that one hasn’t often negotiated with Putin. The Russian President considers the West to be weak and decadent anyway. The man in the Kremlin saw every time confirmation that he was pushing ahead with his imperial plans. This happened in 2008 after the Russian invasion of Georgia or in 2014 after the annexation of Crimea and the Russian-staged uprising in Donbass. There one could also have observed what peace means for the population under Russian occupation, namely deportation, torture and rape.
All this is hidden in the calls and manifestos for “Peace Now”. It’s a very German debate. Among other things, it is characterized by the fact that Ukrainians hardly appear in it, at least not as independent subjects. The colonialist view is irritating in general. In the east, only Moscow counts, while direct neighbors such as Poland or the Baltic States and their sensitivities are not even ignored. The Soviet Union is quickly equated with Russia. It is forgotten that under the Soviet republics, Ukraine was the scene of the worst war crimes committed by the Wehrmacht and Waffen-SS.
Feminist Alice Schwarzer launched the “Manifesto for Peace” together with left-wing politician Sarah Wagenknecht, which has so far been signed by half a million people.
Photo: Henning Kaiser (DPA, Keystone)
So there are also good reasons for intellectuals to stand resolutely on Ukraine’s side and to remind hesitant governments of their duty to help. It is about the existence of Ukraine, after all the second largest country in Europe in terms of area, and about the stability of the continent. But no, Jürgen Habermas and Co. prefer to criticize “morally indignant calls” for powerful weapons and the “bellicarian tenor” in the debate. Some polemics are therefore also allowed here. Looking back today, how would we evaluate an appeal by renowned and well-known personalities to British Prime Minister Winston Churchill in the summer of 1940 to please enter into negotiations with Adolf Hitler?
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