Fortunately, the time when the Wehrmacht terrorized Europe’s Panzermacht away. Currently Germany It falls into the opposite excess: it is A caricature of a nation deluding itself as a “herbivore”Her armored squads provoke fun and ridicule, and become the target of political satire.

The last farce that was orchestrated in the name of public pacifism, It is the delivery of three – as they say three – German Gepard tanks to Ukraine.

Only three, but “in return” … They were handed over to Kyiv three months later In Chancellor Olaf Schultz’s first announcement regarding this supply of military aid. naturally Paradox in the Wall Street Journal In the name of the tank: The cheetah is a beast famous for its speed. Instead, these three gibbers traveled like snails.

Delayed delivery of three armored vehicles equipped with anti-aircraft guns is the culmination of a promise that arrived too late: Chancellor Schulz only came out of his hesitation about arms supplies to Ukraine in late April, two months after Russia’s military aggression.

while Germany continues to fund the military operations of Vladimir Putin with much greater generosityWith its payments to import Russian gas.

In this matter it is no different from Italy, where the debate over arms supplies to Ukraine had a paradoxical aspect: Of real weapons from Italy to Kyiv always arrive very fewMeanwhile, billions from Italy are flowing into Putin’s coffers regularly and in abundance.

Germany is divided equally with Italy internally. The most pro-Russian are the Social Democrats, that is, the chancellor’s party.

This tradition dates back to the Social Democratic Party chancellor led by Willie Brandt, who was the first to conclude agreements with the Soviet Union on long-term gas supplies since the early 1970s, as part of the Ostpolitik (“Eastern Policy”) which He deluded himself that he was fixing communism through business. In this sense, the newest social democratic adviser Gerhard SchroederHired and paid well by Putin’s subsidiary Gazprom, follows a long-standing tradition. And the Schulz continues to be too weak to keep his “soft underbelly” of his pro-Russian circles at bay..

To justify the slow and modest arms supplies to Ukraine, the most divergent arguments were used in pro-Russian circles in Germany: it was argued that the Wehrmacht should not run the risk of depleting its arsenals; It is said that Arming Kyiv “too much” increased the risk of a Russian nuclear attack; It was said that time should be given to train the Ukrainians.

However, all arguments for expediency are in conflict with the more abundant and rapid flows of military aid to Kyiv already provided by eastern states such as Poland and the Baltic states. The other two parties in the coalition that governs Berlin, the Greens and the Liberals, are by no means pro-Russia and continue to criticize Germany’s slow-moving in arms supplies to Kyiv.

The tragic story of the three Gibbard tanks they used Three months for 1600 km It is a hot topic of debate within Germany itself. It also provides an incentive to think for all those who advocate a common European defense, implicitly suggesting that this would be a way to distance themselves from NATO and thus from America. If the chain of command and reaction times of a future European army should resemble those of the Wehrmacht Schulz, happy birthday.

It is no coincidence that those countries that feel directly threatened by Russian expansion – Poland and the Baltic states, but also Swedish and Finnish candidates for membership – trust NATO with reservations about the all-European “alternative”. The cartoon here, too, is easy: imagine that you have to defend a continent attacked by Russia with committees of 27 European ambassadors meeting to issue each military decision.

Federico Rampini publishes a newsletter every Saturday: called Global, you can subscribe Here: corriere.it/global