Germany's parliament heard Zelensky. Then it voted on birthdays.


Continuing his virtual tour of Western capitals, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky addressed the German Parliament in Berlin Thursday morning. The Bundestag is not known as an exciting place under normal conditions, yet, if anything, the circumstances were even more dramatic than of Zelenky's appearance before Congress: Proceedings were briefly delayed, apparently because a rocket attack on Kyiv interrupted the video link.
The tone of Zelensky's speech was different from his U.S. remarks, too. While he called America to realize its ideals, Zelensky chided Germans for shirking their responsibilities and re-enacting a painful past. Appealing to German's recent history of communist rule and national division, Zelensky insisted Nord Stream 2, the controversial gas pipeline that connects Russian and Germany "is a weapon." "You always said, 'It's business, business, business,'" he continued, but Ukraine knew better. Now, Zelensky concluded, Ukrainian and other critics had been proved right: The pipeline was "cement for the wall" separating free Europe from the zone of Russian domination, and German opposition to European Union membership for Ukraine was yet "another brick."
As in Congress, Zelensky received sustained applause from his audience. But after brief parliamentary maneuvering, the Bundestag quickly returned to its scheduled agenda, which included official recognitions of birthdays and instructions on mask wearing. The contrast between the gravity of Zelensky's speech and the apparent indifference of the Bundestag is playing badly in the German press. It also suggests German politicians are far from ready for a permanent defense policy shift — let alone war.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Berlin's response has not been altogether indifferent, of course. In a surprise move earlier this week, the German government announced it would buy 35 F-35 jets from the United States, part of a broader effort to reach NATO's 2 percent target for military spending by member states, but also to better integrate with U.S. and other member forces. Yet there's a difference between promising money for planes that won't be delivered any time soon and intervening in a conflict that's already underway and unlikely to end in the near term even if the bombs stop falling for a time.
Despite the memories of the Berlin Wall which Zelensky tried to raise, geopolitical conditions don't change overnight. Germany's drift toward more active participation in the Western alliance is a development to be welcomed. But Germans still face looming dilemmas about their priorities in a world where civilizational blocs threaten to replace the undifferentiated global order of post-Cold War imagination. Germany won't be able to stay on its preferred agenda forever. Zelensky, the U.S., and Germany's European allies should keep up the pressure.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Samuel Goldman is a national correspondent at TheWeek.com. He is also an associate professor of political science at George Washington University, where he is executive director of the John L. Loeb, Jr. Institute for Religious Freedom and director of the Politics & Values Program. He received his Ph.D. from Harvard and was a postdoctoral fellow in Religion, Ethics, & Politics at Princeton University. His books include God's Country: Christian Zionism in America (University of Pennsylvania Press, 2018) and After Nationalism (University of Pennsylvania Press, 2021). In addition to academic research, Goldman's writing has appeared in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and many other publications.
-
Music reviews: Bon Iver, Valerie June, and The Waterboys
Feature "Sable, Fable," "Owls, Omens, and Oracles," "Life, Death, and Dennis Hopper"
By The Week US
-
Are bonds worth investing in?
the explainer They can diversify your portfolio and tend to be a safer investment than stocks
By Becca Stanek, The Week US
-
Elon has his 'Legion.' How will Republicans encourage other Americans to have babies?
Today's Big Question The pronatalist movement finds itself in power
By Joel Mathis, The Week US
-
Merz's coalition deal: a 'betrayal' of Germany?
Talking Point With liberalism, freedom and democracy under threat globally, it's a time for 'giants' – but this is a 'coalition of the timid'
By The Week UK
-
The anger fueling the Bernie Sanders and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez barnstorming tour
Talking Points The duo is drawing big anti-Trump crowds in red states
By Joel Mathis, The Week US
-
Why the GOP is nervous about Ken Paxton's Senate run
Today's Big Question A MAGA-establishment battle with John Cornyn will be costly
By Joel Mathis, The Week US
-
Ukraine nabs first Chinese troops in Russia war
Speed Read Ukraine claims to have f two Chinese men fighting for Russia
By Peter Weber, The Week US
-
Why are Finland and other nations leaving the land mine treaty?
Today's Big Question Russia's neighbors beef up their defenses
By Joel Mathis, The Week US
-
Bombs or talks: What's next in the US-Iran showdown?
Talking Points US gives Tehran a two-month deadline to deal
By Joel Mathis, The Week US
-
The JFK files: the truth at last?
In The Spotlight More than 64,000 previously classified documents relating the 1963 assassination of John F. Kennedy have been released by the Trump administration
By The Week Staff
-
Norway's windfall: should it go to Ukraine?
Talking Point Oil-based wealth fund is intended 'for future generations of Norwegians', but Putin's war poses an existential threat
By The Week UK