Opposition MP: Germany was naive about Russia until February 24

The chairman of the European People's Party (EPP), Manfred Weber, who belongs to the opposition Christian Social Union in Germany, criticized Berlin's position on Moscow on the eve of Russia's invasion of Ukraine as naive.

He said this in an interview with Yevropeiska Pravda.

Weber distanced himself and emphasized that the EPP, which he represents, has always been on the side of Ukraine.

"We have been saying all along that Nord Stream 2 was a bad idea. I personally said this back in 2014, after the invasion of Crimea, because that was the watershed in history," the German politician said.

However, the official position of Germany, according to him, was naive.

"What Germany was doing was... it was naive! Attempts to find a space for cooperation with Putin, to negotiate with him and satisfy him - this approach was based on the hope that this would avoid further aggravation. But the reality turned out to be different. And now we need to learn a lesson from this," said Weber, whose party was a longtime partner in the CDU/CSU bloc, which until recently was led by Angela Merkel.

He noted that this naive position applies not only to Russia but also to China.

"We, Europeans, also need to get rid of our naiveté towards China. We are increasing our dependence on China, although the same thing may soon happen to Taiwan as is happening to Ukraine. Therefore, all European decisions regarding China should be based on the fact that we must be prepared for the worst-case scenario - a military attack on Taiwan," said the head of the European People's Party.

Author - Olena Madiak, 07/03/2023