Ukraine and Germany: Victory, Belonging & the Future

This episode centers around Ukraine – the importance of its victory in Russia’s war, and its future in Europe and the wider Western democratic alliance. We talk with our expert guests about how failing to aim for Ukrainian victory has conditioned piece-meal support from Germany, undermining its credibility and hurting both Ukrainian and wider western interests.  

German public opinion often runs ahead of political decision-making, which creates opportunities for leadership but, noting how far Germany has come since February 2022, we discuss how far it still has to go to get to a position that genuinely serves its interests and those of its allies and partners. We put this in the context of German strategic culture and the uses that are made of the country’s history. And we show how all of this relates to Ukraine’s victory but also its struggle to assert its belonging.