Two years ago, Putin invaded Ukraine with the aim of annihilating it. At the time I was pretty sure that this meant the end of the post-war order and also the end of the “end of history”, and also that Putin could risk more death and destruction than the West, but I didn’t see it as the eve of a new world war . I was also of the same opinion after Putin’s repeated brandishing of his nuclear weapons.
Now French President Macron has spoken about the possible deployment of ground troops from France or other Western countries in Ukraine, apparently a topic at the Ukraine aid conference on Monday evening in Paris, with many Western heads of government in attendance.
What does that mean? Is Macron testing Putin’s response to Western soldiers’ support of Ukraine in handling cruise missiles and other sophisticated technology? Does he want to put Scholz under pressure with extremely unpleasant alternatives on the question of the delivery of Taurus? Can this be classified as saber rattling, a somewhat helpless message to Putin that although Ukraine cannot currently be supplied with enough war material, and especially not after Trump’s election victory, they still do not want to hand over Ukraine to him as looted property? Or are we now really looking into the abyss of a great war, only half awake, as sleepwalkers in a nightmare, at the end of which there is once again a rude awakening in a destroyed Europe?
If you switch over, you will find out that Bayern Munich has hired Max Eberl as sports director, cannabis is being legalized, the DAX is at 17,423 points and the weather is supposed to be pretty nice at the weekend. May at least that remain with us.