Germany experiences one of the most remarkable shifts in foreign and security policy in years

What Germany experienced in the last week must be one of the most remarkable shifts in foreign and security policy in years. All in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which marked what chancellor Scholz described as a “new era”.

Ukraine has submitted its application against Russia to the ICJ. Russia must be held accountable for manipulating the notion of genocide to justify aggression. We request an urgent decision ordering Russia to cease military activity now and expect trials to start next week.

— Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) February 27, 2022

Germany is now changing its longstanding policy of not sending defensive weapons to conflict zones, accepting now to supply Ukraine with weapons both via third countries and from its own stocks.

Ceasefire talks between Russian and Ukrainian officials began on the Belarusian border on Monday as Russia faced deepening economic isolation four days after invading Ukraine.

Russian forces seized two small cities in southeastern Ukraine and the area around a nuclear power plant, the Interfax news agency said.

One day, a Ukrainian woman saw a Russian soldier in her hometown Henichesk, south of Ukraine. This is what happened next 👀 pic.twitter.com/k5GmkvcyUm

— Ukraine / Україна (@Ukraine) February 27, 2022

But they ran into stiff resistance elsewhere as the biggest assault on a European state since World War Two failed to make as much ground as some had expected.