Vladimir Putin has Germany in his hands. The question of whether or not Putin will open the gas tap again in a few days makes us tremble. Precisely this uncertainty is the main goal of his aggressive confrontational policy.
Read everything you need to know about the war in Ukraine here.
“Neue Osnabrücker Zeitung”: The possible scenarios are undoubtedly threatening. But does that mean you have to paint the devil on the wall? If Russia stops deliveries and gas becomes even more scarce, two things must be clear. First: The supply of households, clinics, day care centers and schools has absolute priority.
And secondly, those who can no longer pay their energy bills due to skyrocketing prices must be protected against a gas or electricity cut – and also against losing their home. Leaving people in the dark and cold would be an oath of disclosure. And it would be another triumph for Vladimir Putin, who uses energy as a weapon and a means of blackmail. We should not allow him that triumph.
“Pforzheimer Zeitung”: Vladimir Putin is considered a player who likes to play very high poker with a bad hand. Uncertainty in the West is currently the main goal of his policy of confrontation. For ten days now, Germany and its allies have been staring at the Nord Stream 1 Baltic Sea pipeline like a rabbit at a snake. This is his infamous game.
The West shouldn’t get involved with this, but rather, as Economics Minister Habeck says, work for the best and prepare for the worst. Putin’s calculus to bet on West fatigue could prove to be a mirage. The war in Ukraine demands a lot from the democracies. In the end, however, people are willing to do something for it.
“Mitteldeutsche Zeitung”: Vladimir Putin, who likes to put pressure on others, is now being tested on his part. After the maintenance work on the Nord Stream 1 pipeline, the Russian President has to decide: does he really want to cut the ties to Germany that have grown over the past 60 years?
Of course he has the power to do so. But disadvantages then threaten not only the Germans. An end to the German-Russian gas business would mean a loss of prosperity for both sides. In Germany, the minus would affect a society that has reached a very high level on average. But how would the poorer Russians deal with the loss of prosperity?
“The Glocke (Oelde)”: For the ruler Putin there are a multitude of possibilities to play a dirty game with the energy-hungry consumer states. (..) German politicians are called upon to exhaust all conceivable options, regardless of the Russian poker game, in order to get through the winter as well as possible. (…) There must be no taboos, no bans on thinking. The Greens’ categorical no to the continued operation of the last three nuclear power plants still in operation beyond December is one of them.
Vice Chancellor Robert Habeck’s appeals to save on heating and showers are repeatedly ridiculed. Even Chancellor Olaf Scholz dismissed the appeals a few days ago. That was unwise. Because Scholz in particular is now asked to make the emergency clear. It should send the clear message: “We need a joint effort. The situation is serious.”
“Nordbayerischer Kurier”: During the corona pandemic, the German state had to mobilize gigantic sums of money to prevent the economy and community from collapsing. It is conceivable that he will soon face this challenge again under different circumstances.
Putin can blackmail Germany. It should never have gotten that far. When the crisis is over one day, there will have to be a relentless analysis of the energy policy of the past 20 years: Parliament must address the question of how and why changing governments made Germany unnecessarily dependent on Russia and only half-heartedly pushed ahead with the energy transition .
“Rhein-Zeitung”: Putin is considered a player who likes to play very high poker with a bad hand. In fact, the Russian president is currently cleverly using his options to unsettle the West. That is the main goal of his aggressive confrontational policy.
For ten days the West, and Germany in particular, has been staring at the Nord Stream 1 Baltic Sea pipeline like a rabbit at a snake. Will Putin restart gas supplies after the maintenance? The Kremlin ruler likes to keep the West in the dark and let the gas-dependent industry and consumers tremble to the maximum – his infamous game.
“Stern”: Germany feels cold in the summer: What if the Russian gas deliveries fail? The question has become more urgent, and in many places preparations are being made for emergencies. Since Monday morning, no Russian natural gas has flowed through the Nord Stream 1 pipeline due to routine maintenance work. But it is uncertain whether the important raw material will shoot through the pipes again as planned.
The reasons for this have long been obvious. Russia’s President Vladimir Putin counts the fomenting of fears in his arsenal of weapons, tries to arouse desires (whether for food or energy) and threats (of nuclear war) to undermine the determination of the countries that support Ukraine in the fight against Russia , and to shift their priorities. What is new, however, is that Putin’s plan is beginning to take effect.
“Münchner Merkur”: With all understanding for Zelenskij’s desire for maximum severity against Moscow: Even the war victim Ukraine is not helped in the end when its supporter Germany shoots itself in the knee. Pictures of freezing German pensioners who are housed in gyms in winter , would only help Putin. But with a bit of luck, it won’t get that far. Moscow still has a certain interest in not making itself completely impossible as a gas supplier.
If the Kremlin turns off the gas supply to the Europeans permanently after around ten days of maintenance work on the Nord Stream I pipeline, it will lose its most important leverage. And Putin was already having fun with his cat-and-mouse game. It would be nice if the traffic light now drew the right conclusions from this. Germany’s situation is so precarious that in winter it cannot do without any of its few reliable sources of energy, not even the last three nuclear reactors.
