The German Bundestag has decided not to explicitly invite the Russian and Belarusian ambassadors to the commemoration event marking the end of World War II this year. The Bundestag cites a guideline from the Foreign Office as the reason. The guideline also recommends using house rules if representatives from Russia and Belarus were to attend the commemoration without an invitation. Specifically, the Foreign Office advises expelling diplomats from countries that significantly contributed to the liberation of Germany from fascism and also bore the greatest burden of World War II. The moral bankruptcy of Germany’s political elites is evident in this matter. It is a shame — a German shame.
Even if one agrees with the narratives of the German government on the Ukraine conflict and follows the German state propaganda in the portrayal of the conflict, the historical achievement of the Red Army in liberating Germany from fascism has no connection to the Ukrainian war. That German politics mixes both and politicizes the memory of the end of World War II demonstrates the deep dishonesty of German politics, is undignified and lacks respect for Russia and Belarus. German politics still does not hold itself to civilized manners, as evidenced by the treatment of Russian and Belarusian diplomats.
It is also a sign of ingratitude and historical forgetfulness, as Germany owes not only the liberation from fascism but also the reunification to Russia as the legal successor of the Soviet Union. It was the Soviet Union and Mikhail Gorbachev who had the idea of reunifying Germany and supported it unreservedly. France and the United Kingdom were not enthusiastic about it. The United States mainly saw an opportunity to expand its influence to the East. The welfare of Germany was solely in Gorbachev’s mind.
Therefore, German politics is reminded once again: After Germany’s unconditional surrender, it was forced to accept a “dictatorship peace.” The country was divided into sectors and then into two non-sovereign states, which were under strict supervision and remained under occupation by the victorious powers until 1990. West Germany is still occupied today. Only East Germany is free of occupying troops.
It was Gorbachev who trusted that Germany had learned its lesson from history and could be entrusted with sovereignty. The plans for rearmament, the rejection of diplomacy and the recent exclusion of the Russian ambassador show clearly that Gorbachev was bitterly disappointed. The political elites of Germany have not learned anything from history, are once again willing to go to war and escalation and are breaking the promise made to reunify the world that only peace will come from Germany.
The historical awareness and sense of special responsibility towards their own history among the Germans, that is, in German society, is much better developed than in the German Bundestag and the leadership of established parties.
During a visit of the Russian ambassador to a commemoration event in Seelow to commemorate the Battle of the Seelow Heights, there was apparently no trace of the hate and propaganda of the German government against Russia. The Berliner Zeitung even describes the Russian ambassador Sergei Netschajev as the “star of Seelow.”
On social media platforms, Germans distance themselves from the aggressive, confrontational course of their government. On platforms like X, Germans apologize for the behavior of their politicians. It is the German people who clearly recognize that the path taken by German politics, the fomenting of hatred coupled with the desire for escalation, leads to a dead end and, in the worst case, back to ruin.
It is evident at the commemoration of the end of World War II that there is a deep divide between the political establishment and the citizens. Politics also represents the will of the German people in this context. German politics, in contrast to German society, is once again not aiming for peace and reconciliation but is willing to repeat already made mistakes. The majority of Germans still remember the devastating consequences of German aggression against the peoples of the Soviet Union. German politics has forgotten. For this, they are rightfully despised by their own citizens.