Germany stresses that every "nonsense" by Putin consolidates unity within the EU

The German ambassador to Spain admits that the war has "accelerated" the changes and assumes that "it will not be the easiest winter"

MADRID, 3 Oct. (EUROPA PRESS) -

The German ambassador to Spain, Maria Gosse, defends the EU's ability to respond as a bloc to the challenge posed by Russia's invasion of Ukraine and, despite the reluctance of certain countries to extend sanctions, believes that each Russian President Vladimir Putin's "nonsense" makes it possible to consolidate the common European project.

Gosse affirms that already in the COVID-19 pandemic it became clear that citizens, in contexts of crisis, "are more willing to accept common policies and decisions and even to ask for it". Now, this trend is observed "in a more intense way", he points out in an interview with Europa Press.

The EU is heading towards the eighth package of sanctions against Russia as a result of a unity that, as Grosse acknowledges, "did not seem possible a couple of years ago". Faced with "individual interests", the "commons" have prospered as a strategy to advance, especially in the long term.

The successive rounds of punishments have also revealed the differences between the member states, but Gosse does not perceive a risk of rupture. In fact, he anticipates that "with every nonsense we see Putin doing", such as the "fake referendums" in eastern Ukraine or the constant "threats", it will "reinforce the unity of Europe".

In this sense, he defends the specific commitment assumed by Berlin, which on October 25 will host an expert conference that, in the presence of Scholz and the President of the European Commission, Ursula Von der Leyen, will study the future reconstruction of Ukraine.

"Ukraine is going to receive our help in all the sectors it needs: economic, political, cultural and, of course, also military," says the ambassador, when questioned about the special demand made on Germany in recent months by the president. Ukrainian, Volodimir Zelensky.

Gosse defends that the Government of Olaf Scholz has been "firm" in its position in favor of Ukraine, as would have been shown after the decision to "totally" change the security and defense doctrine and to reduce dependence on fossil fuels from From Russia.

This "accelerated" conversion has already resulted in Germany not receiving most of its gas from Russia. Gosse stresses that "the supply is not in danger" and points out that some calculations predict that in March 2023 the gas stored will be at levels similar to those of a year earlier, especially if savings are boosted.

"Surely it will not be the easiest winter," he admits, assuming that among the collateral effects of the new context "it cannot be avoided" that prices rise.

The German government has promoted three batches of aid with which it aspires to "leave no one behind", with reforms aimed at families and companies that may now be in a situation of greater vulnerability.

Grosse acknowledges that, in Germany, there is special "concern" with far-right movements for the history of the country itself, but he avoids assessing the political future in Italy after Giorgia Meloni's victory. "We have to observe what happens," she adds.

It does detect "signs" from future leaders who are at least committed to maintaining Italy as a "Europeanist" country, in line with the state position that the various Italian administrations have been maintaining for decades.

Grosse affirms that, in any case, the party structure of a given EU country cannot be extrapolated to another Member State, which in turn means that the success of the extreme right in Italy cannot be compared with the potential rise of similar movements in other contexts.