Europe should listen to Angela Merkel on Ukraine

Former German chancellor Angela Merkel answers questions from journalist and author Alexander Osang under the theme "So what is my country?" at the Berliner Ensemble in Berlin. AP

Former German Chancellor Angela Merkel is one of the most consequential European politicians of the 21st century. She steered Germany and, in large part, the EU through the turbulence of the 2008 financial crisis, the 2015 refugee crisis and Brexit.

The evolution of her career is also symbolic of headwinds of progress greater than herself. She was Germany's first female chancellor and its second-longest-serving one. Her political career began in 1990, just a year after the wall dividing East and West Germany came down. She grew up in the less prosperous, far more repressive eastern part of the country, making her chancellorship as representative as it was successful.

But with the war in Ukraine – which began just two months after she left office – that legacy has come under a great deal of criticism from some in the West, who believe it to have been naive and strategically disastrous. Supply fears sparked by much of the continent's reliance on Russian gas have caused criticism of her approach to grow louder.

It had been made worse by her silence on the issue. That changed on Tuesday, when she conducted her first interview since the beginning of the war. Her responses were firm. She called called Russia's invasion "not just unacceptable but also a major mistake". She also clearly stated she would offer no apologies for her pre-war approach to Russia: “It’s a great shame that it didn’t succeed, but I don’t blame myself for having tried ... I don't see that I should now say it was wrong, and I won't apologise."

British citizens Aiden Aslin, left, and Shaun Pinner, right, and Moroccan Saaudun Brahim, centre, sit behind bars in a courtroom in the breakaway eastern Ukrainian enclave of Donetsk. The three were sentenced to death by pro-Moscow rebels for fighting on Ukraine's side. AP

A Ukrainian soldier fires a machine gun near the town of New York in the breakaway Donetsk enclave. Reuters

The gutted remains of cars lie along a road during heavy fighting in Severodonetsk. AP

Ukrainian soldiers ride an armoured vehicle near the city of Bakhmut, in the breakaway Donetsk enclave. EPA

Ukrainian soldiers and members of civilian demining organisations take part in a training exercise for bomb disposal experts in Peja, Kosovo. Getty

Volunteers clear debris near a damaged shopping mall after night shelling in Kharkiv, Ukraine. EPA

A man walks past a college on fire after a strike in Lysychansk in the eastern Ukrainian region of Donbas. AFP

Ukrainian service members near the town of Soledar. Reuters

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Kyiv. AFP

Residents kneel during a funeral procession for senior lieutenant Vasyl Herych, 31, of the 15th Separate Mountain Assault Battalion, who was killed in Perechyn, Ukraine. Reuters

People hide in a bomb shelter in the city of Lysychansk in the Donbas region. AFP

Ivan Sosnin, 19, surveys the damage to his home in Lysychansk. AFP

Ukrainian troops repair a tank in the Donbas region. AFP

Ukrainian troops fire rockets towards Russian positions at a front line in the Donbas region. AFP

Volunteers from a Danish NGO demonstrate how to search for explosive devices with help of a loop metal detector, outside the town of Ichnia in Ukraine. Reuters

A firefighter takes a break after putting out a fire at a house in a district of Kharkiv that was bombed by Russian forces. Reuters

Plumes of smoke rise from a house on fire after a military strike by Russian forces in Kharkiv. Reuters

The damaged house of Inna Bobryntseva, a woman who died during Russian shelling, in Kharkiv. Ukrainian officials exhumed her body from her backyard as part of an investigation into war crimes. Reuters

A man moves items from a damaged shop in Kharkiv after a Russian military strike the night before. Reuters

Civilian militia men hold shotguns during training at a shooting range on the outskirts of Kyiv, Ukraine. AFP

A woman walks by a destroyed apartment building in the town of Borodyanka. AFP

Rescuers dismantle collapsing structures of a heavily damaged 16-storey residential building in the Saltivka district of Kharkiv. AFP

A Ukrainian bomb disposal worker carries unexploded ordnance during mine clearance work in the village of Yahidne, in the liberated territories of the Chernihiv region. AFP

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, centre, visits the military during a trip to the Zaporizhzhia region. AFP

Ukrainian service members fire a shell from a M777 Howitzer in the Donetsk region as Russia's attack on Ukraine continues. Reuters

Ukrainian servicemen manoeuvre a tank near the frontline in the Donetsk region. AP Photo

The remains of the Darnytsia Car Repair Plant damaged by missile strikes in Kyiv. EPA

A couple embrace on Maidan square in Kyiv. AP Photo

Smoke rises from a residential area in Kyiv. Mayor Vitali Klitschko said several explosions occurred following missile strikes in the Darnytskyi and Dniprovskyi districts of the capital with no casualties reported. EPA

A woman holds a poster showing Russian President Vladimir Putin during a protest against the war in Ukraine at the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin. AP

Smoke rises in the background after Russian missile strikes in Kyiv. AP

A Ukrainian serviceman pauses before going back to the frontline in the Donetsk region of eastern Ukraine. AP

Firefighters dampen down a rail facility in the Darnytsia district of Kyiv after a Russian air strike. EPA

An elderly woman sits in front of destroyed houses after a missile strike, which killed a civilian, in the city of Druzhkivka in the eastern Ukrainian region of Donbas. AFP

A man examines an apartment destroyed during shelling in Donetsk, eastern Ukraine. Five civilians were killed and 20 were injured. EPA

Residents examine cars destroyed during shelling in Donetsk. EPA

Civilians are evacuated from apartments destroyed during shelling in Donetsk. EPA

A man looks on as smoke rises after explosions were heard in Kyiv. Reuters

Residents chat in front of a destroyed building in Borodianka, as Russia's attacks on Ukraine continue. Reuters

A monument to Ukrainian poet Taras Shevchenko, damaged by shelling in Borodianka. Reuters

Men scavenge a burnt Russian military vehicle for parts and scrap metal in Novyi Bykiv. Getty

A crater and a destroyed building after a rocket attack on a small airfield near Kharkiv. EPA

Ukrainian howitzers in action at an undisclosed location. AFP

A girl rides a scooter past a destroyed building in the village of Horenka, Kyiv. AFP

Pope Francis hugs a child during a meeting at the Vatican with children with disabilities and Ukrainian children who fled their country. Reuters

Ukrainian emergency works at a damaged building following shelling in Kharkiv. AP

Members of a medical rescue team gather inside their temporary base in the Donetsk region of eastern Ukraine. AP

A woman sits at a destroyed bus station in the city of Mariupol. AFP

Residents are evacuated from Slovyansk, eastern Ukraine. AP

There are very few people as qualified as her in Russia-West relations. Ms Merkel is a Russian-speaker and also knowledgeable about Ukrainian affairs, particularly regarding its historic relations with Nato.

While there are no easy options going forward, her defence of negotiation and diplomacy is entirely legitimate and held by much of the world. A month after the invasion, UAE Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Co-Operation Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed emphasised the need for a diplomatic solution in a visit to Moscow. Last week, Russian President Vladimir Putin welcomed the head of the African Union as the bloc tried to raise awareness of the significant danger that a food crisis aggravated by the conflict poses to the continent. Its chairman, Moussa Faki Mahamat, emphasised the need for a swift and peaceful resolution.

Even some European nations appear to tend towards moderation on occasion. French President Emmanuel Macron has drawn criticism from more hawkish voices in the west for his comments on the importance of not "humiliating" Russia.

Peace is obviously most important for Ukraine. But so is it for neighbouring countries dealing with a massive refugee crisis. And as the months go by, so is it for the entire world. This week, the World Bank slashed its growth forecast for the global economy for the second time this year.

Germany and other European nations that are perhaps more inclined than most towards diplomacy are still far from advocating a pacifist approach. Berlin has announced a historic increase in its defence spending and only this Tuesday said it is ready to strengthen its military presence on Nato’s eastern flank. Recent scenes from the UN show how distant constructive negotiations are. On Tuesday, Russia's UN envoy Vassily Nebenzia angrily exited the UN Security Council after EU officials accused Moscow of worsening the global food crisis. Russia has also blamed the west after Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov had to cancel a trip to Serbia when neighbouring countries closed their airspace to his plane.

But as the war rages on, Europe must not forget voices such as Ms Merkel's and the need for diplomacy. First and foremost, it must do this for its own sake. Increasingly, it must also do so for the sake of the rest of the world.