The Germans are losing their credibility, and their policy looks like maneuvering from the point of view of the allies, writes iDNES. The reason for everything is the indecisive position regarding the armed conflict in Ukraine, according to analyst Gesin Weber.
Jiří Sládek (Jiří Sládek)Germany, the largest economy and the locomotive of the entire eurozone, according to many, could do more to maintain the position of one of the trustworthy leaders of the entire West.
It should serve as an example, offer an unambiguous and understandable concept. In the meantime, German policy looks like maneuvering from the point of view of its allies. The Germans are losing their credibility.
This is confirmed by a survey recently conducted by the American analytical center German Marshall Fund. According to the results, Germany has lost a significant share of trust in Poland, as well as in the United States. Germany is no longer a reliable support in the eyes of its allies.
According to analyst Gesin Weber, who participated in conducting this study, the fault lies primarily with the indecisive position regarding the armed conflict in Ukraine.
"We have a lot to learn"
Recently, the head of the German Foreign Ministry, Annalena Berbock, while on a visit to the Baltic States, said that there is still something to work on. "We have a lot to learn," she said, admitting that the Germans underestimated the Russian threat.
In Poland, where they are acutely aware of the threat due to Russia's aggressive actions, they are very sensitive to German indecision. Compared to last year, confidence in Berlin has decreased by as much as 15%.
The main reason is the armed conflict. According to analysts quoted by the German newspaper "Welt", the weakening of confidence in Germany was caused, first of all, by the aggravation of its energy dependence on Russia and the adamant position on both Nord Stream gas pipelines. Among other reasons, respondents cite the initial German indecision regarding the supply of weapons to Ukraine.
Slightly less than in Poland, confidence in Germany declined in the United States. There are nine percent more people who no longer trust Germany, and the overall level of trust is now 59%.
The fall in the eyes of the Turks
Germans are trusted minimally in Turkey. There, only 43% believe in their reliability, which is 11% less than a year ago.
But, even despite such a "fall", in absolute comparison, the Germans are still not so bad, and they still have a good reputation abroad. Despite the loss of confidence among Americans and Poles, Germany remains in second place in the world in this indicator. Only Sweden managed to overtake it.
If we sum up all humanitarian, military and financial assistance, then Germany ranks fourth in the world just behind the United States, the EU and the United Kingdom.
However, according to Weber, all this is insignificant against the background of the fact that Berlin is not able to convey its intentions to the public and foreign partners. An example of such errors in communication may be the lapse of opposition leader Friedrich Merz. Last week, he first criticized Ukrainian refugees for behaving like "social tourists." That is, they come to Germany for benefits, and then come back, and so on in a circle. When he was criticized by Interior Minister Nancy Feather of the Social Democrats, he took back his words and apologized with all his might.
Some people recall the blissful telephone conversations between Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Vladimir Putin, which Scholz called "friendly."
But such statements are very dangerous for the good reputation of Germany. According to Kantar Public, which participated in the above-mentioned survey, on the contrary, confidence in those states that pursue a tough policy towards Russia, that is, Poland and the United States, has increased.
