Next stop Brussels
For the second time since the attack on his country, Volodymyr Zelenskyy has ventured on a trip abroad.
On his
secretly planned trip through Western Europe
, the Ukrainian President reached Brussels today.
Zelenskyj will be a guest at the special summit of the European Council and will probably give a speech to the MEPs.
Before Brussels, Zelenskyy was in Paris, but first he visited London, and many EU heads of government may find that a minor sting.
Above all, Chancellor Olaf Scholz and French President Emmanuel Macron
, who met Zelenskyj in Paris last night.
All the aid to Ukraine, the billions, the sanctions, the guns, the candidate status – and then
London first?
"You and I, we're second choice twice," Scholz and Macron could sing each other freely after Bernd Begemann.
"I'm not what you choose, I'm what happens to you."
Zelenskyj's travel plan is probably due to the fact that Ukraine has long been calling for an "aircraft coalition", while the coalition of main battle tank suppliers is still extremely fragile.
There are positive signals
from London :
They are "actively" considering which combat aircraft could be given to Ukraine "in the long term."
How actively do you think in Paris, Warsaw, Berlin?
Chancellor Scholz criticizes an
"outbidding competition"
, Defense Minister Boris Pistorius speaks of
"hypothetical questions"
.
The constantly repeated phases of pressure and counter-pressure, demands for arms and refusal to arms, loud shouts and booming silence make the debates so tiring.
Taboos are built up implicitly, only to be eliminated: no weapons, no
heavy
weapons, no tanks, ok no
battle
tanks ,
then battle tanks after all, but definitely no planes
... At the end of each round there is usually a sudden breakthrough – and right away the next requirement.
What was absolutely necessary yesterday at the front should
no longer be decisive for the war today
.
There is no script for this war, Olaf Scholz rightly said.
Nevertheless, you can already anticipate the
next act
.
Begemann, take over: »I don't give a damn about you.
I'll be faithful to you to the grave."
President Selensky's Surprise Visit to London: "Give Us Wings"
You can find more news and background information on the war in Ukraine here:
Key developments:
Starlink wants to prevent Ukraine from continuing to use its satellite internet for military offensive purposes.
Zelenskyj comes to Brussels.
And: 120 billion dollars have flowed from NATO countries so far.
"The problem is the way the Ukrainians fight":
Even German tanks will not significantly influence the course of the war, says US military expert Michael Kofman.
Here he explains why a peace offer from Vladimir Putin would be the toughest test of all.
Column - »This is not our war«
:
German pacifism has a major problem that became obvious with the Russian invasion of Ukraine: it is split in two
State apparatus against teenager
History knows many examples of individual youth defying an oppressive regime.
A recent example is
Russian student Olesya Krivtsova, 19
, who used leaflets and Instagram to speak out against her country's war of aggression against Ukraine.
Our author Ivan Ruslyannikov describes how the Moscow regime has since hit the Arkhangelsk girl
with raids, house arrest, fines and criminal proceedings
.
When a power apparatus needs to strike out over a young girl's Instagram posts, it's often a
signal of decline
and inner disruption.
But maybe everything will be fine soon?
Maybe Putin is listening to the AfD?
Yesterday, the parliamentary group of the »only peace party in Germany« (self-promotion) presented a plan to end the attack on Russ... sorry, on the Ukraine, which violated international law.
The fact that Putin is taking action is not so far
-fetched, because the AfD proposal reads as if the Russian ambassador slipped it to the AfD faction leader Tino Chrupalla at the most recent propaganda meeting to celebrate the Red Army's victory at Stalingrad: Moscow's troops should withdraw, instead,
the sanctions should end
and Ukraine should promise
never to become a member of the EU or NATO
.
Moscow and Kiev were to reach a “bilateral” agreement
on the fate of Crimea , and there were to be
referenda
in four Ukrainian provinces as to
whether people would rather belong to Russia than to their state.
Why should Putin negotiate when his declared goal is the annihilation of Ukraine, asked a
»GEZ mob« (Copyright AfD parliamentary group)
.
"I can't look into Mr. Putin's head," replied AfD honorary chairman Alexander Gauland.
"It's a matter of negotiation, trying to figure out what he really wants."
Yes, what does he really want, Putin?
Let's finally ask him!
One could dismiss such appearances as crazy and propagandistic, simply ignore them.
If it weren't for the comment column for the YouTube video of the press conference,
which is teeming with blue hearts
, praise and thanks from AfD supporters.
Ignoring is not a solution.
But what then?
Criticism of Aggressive War: How the Russian State Persecuted a Student
Tell me when the ground trembles
It is still uncertain how many people died in the terrible earthquake in Turkey and Syria.
Anyone who would like to help the victims in the earthquake region with donations should read Sabrina Knoll's interview with Burkhard Wilke, the managing director of the German Central Institute for Social Issues, which checks aid organizations for careful and efficient use of donations.
Many readers may be wondering
why nobody was actually able to predict the quake
– in a region that has been known as an earthquake zone for decades.
Jörg Römer from our science department explains today why
the timing of an earthquake cannot be predicted
.
It can only determine probabilities - and issue warnings as soon as it starts.
The problem: "People only have a chance to use the information if they are far enough away from the center of the earthquake."
Those who are in the epicenter hardly have a chance.
Ultimately, the only thing left for the residents of such danger areas
is to secure their houses and infrastructure as best they can
, which probably did not happen in Syria or Turkey.
Turkish opposition politicians in the affected region complained even shortly before the earthquake that they
were not prepared enough for disasters
.
A
political aftershock
could therefore still threaten Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in the elections in May.
Surprised in sleep: why no one knows beforehand when the earth will tremble
Here is the current quiz of the day
The starting question today: In January 2023, the Ukrainian Interior Minister died in a helicopter crash.
What was his name?
loser of the day...
…is Andrea Tandler,
mask dealer and Corona profiteer
, who has to remain in custody for the time being.
The district court in Munich dismissed her complaint, as my colleagues Jürgen Dahlkamp and Sven Röbel report.
With commissions for mask deals, Tandler and her partner Darius N. collected 48.3 million euros in state funds.
You read correctly: 48.3 million euros
, and that alone in commissions.
"Tandler and her partner Darius N. are considered the epitome of crisis profiteers," write the colleagues, "who wanted to earn money on a large scale from the state's emergency at the beginning of the pandemic,
sometimes with indecently high prices for protective material
." North Rhine-Westphalia ordered Masks for a unit price of 9.90 euros, Bavaria for 8.90 euros.
That alone would not be a case for the judiciary.
But the investigators are investigating the suspicion that up to 15 million euros in taxes were evaded, and they see a risk of Tandler fleeing abroad.
Greed is dangerous: If the mask marketers had taxed their money properly, they could probably enjoy the remaining millions of taxpayers' money today without any worries.
Appeal dismissed: mask millionaire Tandler must continue to sit
The latest news from the night
Boris Johnson raked in 2.8 million euros for speeches he hasn't even given:
Former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson continues to cash in after leaving Downing Street.
He received an advance payment in the millions for future appearances.
According to the US Secretary of State, China's balloon is part of a surveillance program:
The alleged espionage balloon over the USA was not an isolated case - according to the US Secretary of State it was integrated into a large surveillance system.
Words of warning also come from NATO.
"He shouldn't be in Congress":
George Santos at least doctored his CV, probably even outright lied.
Nevertheless, he represents the Republicans in Congress.
This causes anger in their own ranks – also with Mitt Romney.
The SPIEGEL + recommendations for today
How do parents know if their child is gifted?
The gifted club Mensa took in a four-year-old – to the astonishment of Zurich professor Elsbeth Stern.
Here she explains when intelligence can be measured and how parents properly support smart children.
"You don't forget how to ski":
are you ever too old for the slopes?
Nonsense, says the 78-year-old ski instructor Hans-Peter Wucherer - and explains why winter sports are suitable for everyone.
Plus: an overview of where seniors can get cheap ski passes.
In a headlock:
German sociology is looking at a court case: a local politician from the AfD is accused, and his partner is on the witness stand.
It is the AfD explainer Cornelia Koppetsch.
I wish you a good start into the day.
Yours Melanie Amann, member of the editor-in-chief
