London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Friday, Oct 24, 2025

Ukraine's Zelensky calls on Germany to tear down Russian wall

Ukraine's Zelensky calls on Germany to tear down Russian wall

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has told German MPs that a new type of Berlin Wall is being built, dividing Europe between freedom and oppression.

He thanked Germany for its support during Russia's invasion.

But it was uncomfortable listening for many MPs as he criticised German energy policy and business interests for contributing to that wall of division.

Over the past week, Mr Zelensky has given a master class in how to pitch his message to allies.

On Wednesday, he addressed US Congress, referring to Pearl Harbor and the 9/11 terror attacks. On Tuesday he asked Canada's parliament to envisage bombs and missiles falling on Toronto, Vancouver and Edmonton.

Last week, his address to the House of Commons in London was partly a homage to Winston Churchill's wartime speeches.

His emotive speech to the German parliament, the Bundestag, was equally tailored to appeal to his audience with well-chosen historical parallels. Some of his audience grew up in communist East Germany behind the Berlin Wall.

During the Cold War, Germany's dogged negotiation and engagement with Moscow contributed to the fall of the Berlin Wall and German reunification.

Since then Germany has tried to use trade, business and energy links to integrate a peaceful Russia into the West.

But Russian President Vladimir Putin's invasion of Ukraine three weeks ago has destroyed many of those aspirations. The general political consensus in Germany now is that this may have been the wrong approach with Mr Putin's increasingly authoritarian and kleptocratic government.

President Zelensky expressed outrage that some German businesses were still operating in Russia. The controversial, now cancelled, Russian-German gas pipeline Nord Stream 2 was "cement for that new wall" dividing Europe, he said. Germany's continued reluctance to allow Ukraine into the European Union was "another brick" in that new wall.

"Dear Mr Scholz, tear down this wall," he demanded of the German chancellor, repeating US President Ronald Reagan's historic demand to the Soviets in 1987 as he stood beside the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin.

Many German ministers listening will agree with him. The Green Party, which in the new governing coalition is now responsible for energy policy within the powerful Economy Ministry, has for years been campaigning against Nord Stream 2.

Even those who once supported the pipeline have changed their minds. Until recently Mr Scholz still referred to it as an non-political business matter.

But as Russian troops gathered on Ukraine's borders, shortly before the invasion, he unexpectedly announced the newly finished pipeline would not be opening after all.

Using another German Cold War analogy, in his speech President Zelensky said that Ukraine needed an airlift, and a no-fly zone to protect it, just as Cold War West Berlin had been saved by the Allied airlift in 1948-49.

He also reminded Germany of its responsibility to make up for Nazi crimes in Ukraine, saying Ukrainian towns and cities were being destroyed for the second time in 80 years.

This was a well-judged comment - Germany does guilt well. But for now there is no time for national bouts of repentance and soul searching.

President Zelensky's speech was greeted by long applause and standing ovations.

The main opposition party, the conservative CDU, expressed outrage that after the address the chamber went on to discuss normal parliamentary business, instead of debating the war in Ukraine. The transition certainly jarred as the parliamentary president announced, amid booing from opposition MPs, a scheduled birthday congratulation message.

Pressure is growing from Ukraine, and from German voters, to end German reliance on Russian energy imports.

The German government is planning to stop imports of Russian oil and coal this year, with an end to Russian gas as soon as other sources are found. Berlin argues that a sudden ban would harm Germany more than Russia, sparking mass unemployment here.

German Economy Minister Robert Habeck is now on a whirlwind global tour to drum up energy from elsewhere. After a visit to Norway yesterday, he announced a deal to boost imports of Norwegian gas and this week he'll fly to Qatar.

This may not satisfy German voters. In polls a majority say they want an instant embargo on Russian energy. But then it may be impossible to fulfil the electorate's demands - in other surveys an overwhelming majority of German voters also say that energy costs are already too high.


Watch: Surrogate babies waiting for parents in a bomb shelter in Kyiv, Ukraine


Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Microsoft AI CEO: ‘We’re making an AI that you can trust your kids to use’ — but can Microsoft rebuild its own trust before fixing the industry’s?
China and Russia Deploy Seductive Espionage Networks to Infiltrate U.S. Tech Sector
Apple’s ‘iPhone Air’ Collapses After One Month — Another Major Misstep for the Tech Giant
Graham Potter Begins New Chapter as Sweden Head Coach on Short-Term Deal
Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa Alleges Poison Plot via Chocolate and Jam
Lakestar to Halt External Fundraising as Investor in Revolut and Spotify
U.S. Innovation Ranking Under Scrutiny as China Leads Output Outputs but Ranks 10th
Three Men Arrested in London on Suspicion of Spying for Russia
Porsche Reverses EV Strategy as New CEO Bets on Petrol and Hybrids
Singapore’s Prime Minister Warns of ‘Messy’ Transition to Post-American Global Order
Andreessen Horowitz Sets Sights on Ten-Billion-Dollar Fund for Tech Surge
US Administration Under President Donald Trump Reportedly Lifts Ban on Ukraine’s Use of Storm Shadow Missiles Against Russia
‘Frightening’ First Night in Prison for Sarkozy: Inmates Riot and Shout ‘Little Nicolas’
White House Announces No Imminent Summit Between Trump and Putin
US and Qatar Warn EU of Trade and Energy Risks from Tough Climate Regulation
Apple Challenges EU Digital Markets Act Crackdown in Landmark Court Battle
Nicolas Sarkozy begins five-year prison term at La Santé in Paris
Japan stocks surge to record as Sanae Takaichi becomes Prime Minister
This Is How the 'Heist of the Century' Was Carried Out at the Louvre in Seven Minutes: France Humiliated as Crown with 2,000 Diamonds Vanishes
China Warns UK of ‘Consequences’ After Delay to London Embassy Approval
France’s Wealthy Shift Billions to Luxembourg and Switzerland Amid Tax and Political Turmoil
"Sniper Position": Observation Post Targeting 'Air Force One' Found Before Trump’s Arrival in Florida
Shouting Match at the White House: 'Trump Cursed, Threw Maps, and Told Zelensky – "Putin Will Destroy You"'
Windows’ Own ‘Siri’ Has Arrived: You Can Now Talk to Your Computer
Thailand and Singapore Investigate Cambodian-Based Prince Group as U.S. and U.K. Sanctions Unfold
‘No Kings’ Protests Inflate Numbers — But History Shows Nations Collapse Without Strong Executive Power
Chinese Tech Giants Halt Stablecoin Launches After Beijing’s Regulatory Intervention
Manhattan Jury Holds BNP Paribas Liable for Enabling Sudanese Government Abuses
Trump Orders Immediate Release of Former Congressman George Santos After Commuting Prison Sentence
S&P Downgrades France’s Credit Rating, Citing Soaring Debt and Political Instability
Ofcom Rules BBC’s Gaza Documentary ‘Materially Misleading’ Over Narrator’s Hamas Ties
Diane Keaton’s Cause of Death Revealed as Pneumonia, Family Confirms
Former Lostprophets Frontman Ian Watkins Stabbed to Death in British Prison
"The Tsunami Is Coming, and It’s Massive": The World’s Richest Man Unveils a New AI Vision
Outsider, Heroine, Trailblazer: Diane Keaton Was Always a Little Strange — and Forever One of a Kind
Dramatic Development in the Death of 'Mango' Founder: Billionaire's Son Suspected of Murder
Two Years of Darkness: The Harrowing Testimonies of Israeli Hostages Emerging From Gaza Captivity
EU Moves to Use Frozen Russian Assets to Buy U.S. Weapons for Ukraine
Europe Emerges as the Biggest Casualty in U.S.-China Rare Earth Rivalry
HSBC Confronts Strategic Crossroads as NAB Seeks Only Retail Arm in Australia Exit
U.S. Chamber Sues Trump Over $100,000 H-1B Visa Fee
Shenzhen Expo Spotlights China’s Quantum Step in Semiconductor Self-Reliance
China Accelerates to the Forefront in Global Nuclear Fusion Race
Yachts, Private Jets, and a Picasso Painting: Exposed as 'One of the Largest Frauds in History'
Australia’s Wedgetail Spies Aid NATO Response as Russian MiGs Breach Estonian Airspace
McGowan Urges Chalmers to Cut Spending Over Tax Hike to Close $20 Billion Budget Gap
Victoria Orders Review of Transgender Prison Placement Amid Safety Concerns for Female Inmates
U.S. Treasury Mobilises New $20 Billion Debt Facility to Stabilise Argentina
French Business Leaders Decry Budget as Macron’s Pro-Enterprise Promise Undermined
Trump Claims Modi Pledged India Would End Russian Oil Imports Amid U.S. Tariff Pressure
×