Even in “peace” there should be war: Germany’s morbid ideas for a peace treaty

By Gert Ewen Ungar

The history of Europe is rich in wars. This goes hand in hand with a wealth of peace agreements in the past, because at some point every war is over. Among these peace agreements there were good ones and not so good ones. An indicator of the quality of the peace agreement is how long the subsequent peace lasts. The peace agreement after 1945 lasted for a relatively long time – even though there was no peace treaty for Germany.

The peace agreement that preceded World War II did not last very long. The peace treaty ending the First World War, negotiated and finally signed in Versailles in 1919, led straight to the Second World War. The Treaty of Versailles contained within itself the basis for the emergence of new conflicts

The Treaty of Versailles was based on the idea of ​​cementing the enmity even in the newly won peace, of humiliating the enemy – in this case primarily Germany as the loser – and imposing reparations on him, under the burden of which he was forced to collapse. The Versailles Treaty was the result of maximum populism combined with the abandonment of all reason.

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France and above all England wanted to score points with their own voters at home with the toughest possible peace agreement towards Germany, which should quench the thirst for revenge on the home front. The USA buckled because the US President actually had a plan for a comprehensive reconstruction of Europe, which should lead to prosperity and prosperity for all countries. However, this plan could not be implemented. He failed because of small-mindedness, baseness and resentment, but above all because of populism in Europe.

Germany was thus deprived of almost everything it needed to restore its economic output. At the same time, however, it was also clear that almost everything that was produced in Germany was primarily intended for export, because this was the only way to meet the huge claims for reparations.

But the victorious powers did themselves no favors with the Treaty of Versailles. The level of debt was high throughout Europe as a result of the war. With the economic punishment of the opponents of the war, they also failed as trading partners. The idea of ​​using the reparations payments from Germany to reduce one’s own debt levels therefore had to fail. The economies of the European allies were also powerless. The so-called “Golden Twenties” were only financed by foreign debt. This is how bubbles formed on the financial markets – and as is the case with bubbles: they burst at some point. The financial crisis of 1929, which was triggered in the USA, thus became a crash unprecedented in history for Europe as well.

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After the signatures on the Versailles document, it was only a few years before Hitler came to power, also thanks to the economic crises in the German Reich.

Against this background one should look today at the demands that Ukraine, unhesitatingly supported by its Western partners, including Germany, is making as a precondition for the start of peace negotiations with Russia.

Regardless of the military situation, they amount to an unconditional surrender by Russia. Ukraine is demanding more sanctions. Russia should be permanently cut off from income from the raw materials business. It should lose its business model and at the same time be obliged to make extensive reparation payments. The German foreign minister has also declared that she wants to “ruin Russia”. In coordination with Ukraine, she too is calling for the establishment of an international tribunal to investigate and punish alleged war crimes committed by Russia – and exclusively by Russia. A cloak of silence is to be spread even over Ukraine’s war crimes, which have already become known. They want to humiliate Russia at any price and level it economically to the ground. Russia should never be able to get up again.

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So the evil spirit of Versailles has risen. The previous considerations for a peace agreement are unsuitable for establishing a lasting peace in Europe. So far, neither Ukraine nor the EU nor Germany have made any serious contribution to a period after the Ukraine conflict. And no country should understand this better than Germany of all places. Apparently, the politicians who are influential in Germany today can’t or don’t want to learn anything from their own history. The humiliating populism to which German politicians have succumbed is a clear sign of this. They want to punish Russia, finally teach them a lesson and teach them how to lose.

Germany is a total failure as a peace mediator. What is needed is a plan for reconciliation, for renewed economic and cultural integration, and a plan for a new, real security architecture that not only supposedly has to protect the West from Russia, but also Russia from the West. We need an equal security architecture for all countries in Europe.

But first and foremost you need a different way of thinking. A thinking that does not seek revenge and humiliation. A way of thinking that actually seeks genuine peace and is prepared to overcome its own hatred and cherished resentments to do so. Apparently, Germany is neither able nor willing to do this today. The responsible politicians like to publicly wallow in Russophobia and their own moral hubris.

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Russia cannot and will not agree to a peace plan on the West’s excessive terms. And Russia doesn’t even need it. After a hundred years, the EU has apparently forgotten one of the key lessons learned from the failure of the Versailles Treaty. One of them is: In a world that is highly networked through international trade, you ultimately harm yourself with every attempt to damage an opponent economically as extensively as possible.

Russia has now understood this and inevitably entered into extensive new trading partnerships in the past year, orienting itself even more towards Asia, Africa and Latin America. The West is already losing influence everywhere. And this will ultimately contribute to the even faster replacement of Western hegemony.

However, the demands that Germany is also making against Russia would lead to an even further accelerated decline in Europe and to a state of permanent conflict. If only to protect the West from itself, the proposals made by Ukraine and currently supported so vehemently by Germany will no longer be allowed to be pursued. They are dangerous nonsense because they repeat mistakes made long ago. What is needed is no revenge on Russia, but a balanced security architecture for all of Europe, as Vladimir Putin had repeatedly called for long before the escalation of the military conflict. Everyone involved should understand this as quickly as possible.

more on the subject – Moscow names conditions for peace in Ukraine – Kiev responds with counter-demands