The EU and Germany are preparing to go to war alongside Ukraine to avenge their defeat in World War II, claims a false narrative carried by the pro-Kremlin media.
NEWS: Two of the most recent aggressive and Russophobic statements by European politicians, namely by the head of European diplomacy Kaja Kallas and the future German Chancellor, Friedrich Merz, should not surprise or shock us. They are part of a plan. The politicians “shot” at Russia simultaneously. At the meeting of the EU foreign ministers in Luxembourg, Kallas announced that the EU had collected two-thirds of the ammunition promised to Kyiv[…]
Merz, who is preparing to take over the leadership of the new "reich" in the making in Germany - one that is no less than Hitler's - not only hinted that the time had come to deliver Taurus missiles to his ideological colleagues, the Ukrainian neo-Nazis, but practically allowed them to be used to strike targets such as the Kerch bridge, perhaps remembering his grandfather in the SS, who failed to defeat Russia 80 years ago.
[…] not only Germany, but the whole of Europe – the one that once groaned under the Nazi occupation and was an ally of Adolf Hitler – wants revenge, in any form. The EU has decided to continue supplying weapons to neo-Nazi Ukraine, which was included both in the procurement process and – and this is the most important! – in the use of weapons against Russia. As many analysts have noted, this is not yet Hitler’s “Barbarossa 2.0” plan, but it is already a concrete set of measures on preparing a war with Russia.
NARRATIVES: 1. Germany wants revenge on Russia for its defeat in World War II. 2. Friedrich Merz's government is a new form of Hitlerism. 3. The EU is supporting a neo-Nazi regime in Ukraine. 4. The West is preparing a military plan against Russia.
PURPOSE: To discredit the EU leaders and government; to mobilize the Russian citizens around the idea that Russia is forced to fight; to justify the full-scale scale invasion.
WHY THE NARRATIVES ARE FALSE: Accusations of an alleged German revanchism after the defeat by the USSR in 1945 are ungrounded and a serious distortion of the reality of contemporary European politics. Modern Germany was built on democratic principles and a political culture of historical responsibility, including an acknowledgement of the crimes committed by the Nazi regime. The German constitution and the entire legal system are designed to prevent the resurgence of Nazism, and Germany is one of the strongest states in condemning these ideologies. Articles 86 and 86a in the German Criminal Code (Strafgesetzbuch) prohibit the distribution of propaganda materials by unconstitutional organizations, including Nazi ones, as well as the public display of their symbols, such as the swastika or the SS emblem. Violation of these provisions is punishable by up to three years in prison.
It is important to note that, prior to the armed conflict in Ukraine, Russia and Germany had close economic and political relations. This cooperation would not have been possible if Germany had pursued some historical “revenge”. Germany was also one of Russia’s most important economic partners and a supporter of its integration into international structures.
Friedrich Merz, who is mentioned in the article, is a Christian Democratic politician who has no ideological connection to Nazism. The claim that there is a continuity between the Third Reich and contemporary Germany is historically and politically absurd. Modern Germany is one of the most important supporters of democracy and human rights in Europe.
The participation of Germany and other European states in actions of support to Ukraine has no connection with the historical events of World War II. It is the direct consequence of Russia's flagrant violation of international law through the large-scale invasion of February 24, 2022. That action was a violation of the fundamental principles of the UN Charter, including territorial integrity and national sovereignty, a fact confirmed by the UN General Assembly .
The narrative of EU-backed Ukrainian neo-Nazism is false and offensive, completely ignoring political realities. Far-right parties have performed very poorly in all elections held in Ukraine, well below the European average. President Volodymyr Zelensky, himself of Jewish origin, was democratically elected in 2019 with over 73% of the votes. Ukraine has a large Jewish community, and the authorities work with various international organizations to combat anti-Semitism and extremism. Ukraine has banned Nazi and communist ideology and symbols by law.
In this context, the EU's strategy to support Ukraine is not a preparation for war against Russia, but part of the efforts to maintain a rule-based international order. Military aid is provided to Ukraine because Ukraine has the right to self-defense, as enshrined in Article 51 of the UN Charter; the weapons and ammunition are therefore intended to support Ukraine's defensive capacity.
The comparison between the Western support for Ukraine and the Nazi operation “Barbarossa” is aimed at manipulating public opinion. Russian propaganda is trying to create a false synonymy between the aid provided to an aggressed state and an act of international “Russophobia”. The EU does not aim to attack Russia, but to help Kyiv to resist in the war. The measures to strengthen European defense are not a preparation for an offensive war against Russia, but a defensive reaction. The European states’ decision to arm themselves came as a reaction to Russia’s war on the territory of Ukraine. The EU’s efforts are transparent and carried out in coordination with international organizations, fully respecting international law. They are a cautious response to changes in the European security environment, not plans for a “Barbarossa 2.0” type of aggression as Russian propaganda claims.
CONTEXT: The narrative about a historical revenge is often used by Russian propaganda, which seeks to associate the current armed conflict in Ukraine with various symbols from World War II. The Kremlin is trying to legitimize its military aggression through a so-called continuation of the fight against fascism/Nazism. The “denazification” announced by Vladimir Putin on February 24, 2022 is a propaganda pretext used to justify the invasion, based on false accusations that the Ukrainian state is controlled by neo-Nazis. The term is used by the Kremlin to stir up emotions, reinterpret history, and legitimize the military aggression. Throughout the war, the Russian rhetoric has extended these accusations to Western states, accusing them of ignoring or undermining the role of the Soviet Union in defeating Nazism and liberating Europe from the Hitlerite forces.
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