“There will be many powerhouses”
Chief Chancellor: Germany cannot be defended without the US

05/11/2022, 09:35

NATO is now more important than ever to Germany. The Chief Chancellor, Schmidt, warned that the country would not be able to defend itself without help from the United States. One can only “survive in this world” as a strong alliance partner.

According to the head Chancellor, Wolfgang Schmidt, Germany could not defend itself against Russia without its allies. “But that’s why we are in the same alliance, NATO. (…) The US is very important for Germany, but also for Europe and NATO,” Schmidt told Deutsche Welle. “And that’s why we work so closely and well together, because we can only survive in this world as an alliance, as an alliance of strong partners.”

For example, Chancellor Olaf Scholz invited several states to the G7 summit in June that did not condemn Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in a UN vote. They now want to “discuss the situation in the world at eye level.” Russia no longer feels bound by international law. “Of course, how the international community handles this has to be discussed with each other. One country or an alliance of countries like the G7 cannot simply tell the other,” Schmidt explained. India and South Africa have confirmed their presence at the summit.

When asked if Germany could take on an international leadership position, the head Chancellor said the Federal Republic was acting “mainly through the European Union.” That’s what French President Emmanuel Macron and Scholz tried to convey to Russian President Vladimir Putin before the invasion of Ukraine. “The times when individual powers divide the world among themselves and think within spheres of influence are over. We don’t believe that it will be a uni- or bipolar world, but there will be many powerhouses.”