The figure of Angela Merkel once again divides Europe. While the European Parliament prepares to present him with the European Order of Merit for his political career and his contribution to the European Union, from the east of the continent Criticism grows against the legacy of the former German leader in relation to.
The harshest reaction has come from Finland. The former head of Finnish military intelligence and current EPP MEP Pekka Toveri has directly attacked the explanations offered by Merkel on him before that of Ukraine.
“It is complete nonsense,” said Toveri in statements to and reported by Welt The retired military officer believes that Merkel is constructing a false story about the causes of the war and about the position that Poland and the Baltic countries maintained vis-à-vis Russia.
Merkel’s phrase that has caused outrage in Eastern Europe
The controversy stems from an interview given by Merkel last year to a Hungarian media outlet. There, the former chancellor assured that in the summer of 2021 Germany and France tried to promote a formal dialogue between the European Union and Russia, but that the initiative ended up blocked by opposition from countries such as Poland and the Baltic States.
“Then I left office and Putin’s aggression began”Merkel even stated. The words were interpreted in several Eastern European countries as an attempt to distribute responsibilities for the diplomatic failure prior to the Russian invasion of February 2022. “This narrative is reminiscent of the well-known Russian propaganda that claims that NATO’s expansion to the east caused the war in Ukraine,” said the former Finnish general.
Merkel accused of trusting Putin too much
The criticism is not limited to Finland alone. Very direct attacks against the former German chancellor have also emerged from Estonia.
Riho Terras, former commander-in-chief of the Estonian armed forces, accused Merkel of trying to avoid political responsibilities and squarely blamed Berlin for having maintained an overly accommodating relationship with Moscow even after Russia’s annexation of Crimea in 2014.
The Estonian MEP also launched a particularly harsh comparison by linking Merkel with former German Chancellor Gerhard Schröder, known for his close relationship with Vladimir Putin and for his links with Russian energy companies.
Nord Stream 2 returns to the center of the debate
Much of the criticism against Merkel revolves around the Nord Stream 2 project, which for years has become one of the symbols of European energy dependence on Russia.
For the Baltic countries and part of northern and eastern Europe, the Berlin’s big strategic mistake was precisely to strengthen energy cooperation with Moscow even after the annexation of Crimea.
“Nord Stream 2 became the clearest symbol of the extent to which Europe believed it could change Russia’s mentality and behavior through economic relations and dialogue,” Terras said in statements published in Welt.
According to her critics, Merkel maintained excessive confidence in diplomacy and economic interdependence as tools to contain Putin. For her defenders, however, the former chancellor acted within a European context where a large part of the governments They were still committed to keeping the channels of dialogue with Moscow open.
The European award that reopens old wounds
The controversy also comes at a particularly symbolic moment. The European Parliament will deliver this Tuesday the European Order of Merit to several figures considered key for European construction. Honorees include Merkel, former Polish President Lech Wałęsa and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
But the recognition of Merkel has reopened still very visible wounds within Europe about how the relationship with Russia was managed during the last decade and who was really responsible for not stopping Putin’s aggressive drift sooner.
