Not even an icy welcome for German reunification

[Skybird]

Originally Posted by Sailor Steve

I wasn't.

Öh - nations I mean. And it seems to be true, no European nation wanted reunification of Germany. None. And for long time, the US and the USSR as well. I always was believing reports saying that Gorbatchev was in favour of it from much earlier on, although he still seems to have been amongst the earliest major players changing their minds.

And that the Brits until the end wanted special rights to hold sovereign British manouvers on former GDR soil after reunification, just showed how very pissed they were indeed. The Americans at some point started to be pragmatic and wanted to secure that Germany stays in NATO. The french conpsirated and playxed the britsh versus the Germans and the Germans versus the british. And it seems to be true and coifnirmed indeed now: the softening-up of the planned Euro currency and the earlier-than-planned introduction of it, was part of their price to accept Germany reuniting.

The article again reminds of that the Russians were angry about the eastern expansion of NATO for justified reasons, and that NATO has rightout lied to them 20 years ago. We should not forget that that way we may need to share some part of the responsibility that Putinism has grown strong in Russia. If Russian trust would not have been betrayed in following years after reunification, with all that constant moving East of NATO's borders against clear and direct promises earlier, the U-turn in Putin's thinking - who originally was a once very Europe-friendly politican who wanted to move Russia closer to Europe, and for that even was compared to Alexander who envisoned the same modernisation and pro-Western reorientation at his time - maybe would not have taken place, or would not have become so extreme. That Putin strengthens Russian central authorities again like in Soviet times, has somethign to do with his change of mind, and that he realises that Russia strands alone and that NATO cannot be trusted. At least that is how things necessarily must appear to the Russian mind. Russia moving closer to Europe, like I thought ten years ago that it would be possible, I cannot imagine anymore for the forseeable future - meaning my lifetime by that.

On the other hand, the German example shows how historic things can develope a self-dynamic so unimaginably fast and irresistible that everybody gets rolled over by how fast things are changing.