Step into a world of intricate power dynamics, shifting alliances, and historical narratives that have shaped the course of nations. “Geopolitical Upheaval in Eastern Europe” invites you to embark on a journey through the tumultuous landscape of Eastern Europe and tries to decipher the situation with common sense and a balanced understanding of law and justice.. Delve into the pages of this book to uncover the untold stories, and geopolitical chess matches. From the echoes of historical conflicts to the contemporary struggles for influence, this sneak peek offers a tantalising glimpse into the captivating exploration of geopolitics with a German view.
From page 22-23 “What is geopolitics”:
There are great powers that claim exclusive spheres of interest for themselves, in which they do not tolerate any interference by other states. If this is not respected, it can even mean war in the worst case scenario. A very good example of this is the United States of America. James Monroe, US president from 1817 to 1825, produced a doctrine that defined the continent of North and South America as an exclusively US sphere of interest. The Monroe Doctrine is still valid today and is also stringently pursued by the USA. In the course of this book, we will come back to this doctrine more often.
Space in geopolitical thinking has two aspects. A geometric and a geographical one. The geometric aspect is primarily concerned with the shape, structure, and location of space and with parts of space. To put it more figuratively, it is about the consideration of states and parts of states. The geographical aspect is much more important in our consideration. This is where the natural and cultural characteristics of space come into play. Rivers, lakes, mountains and vegetation, as well as people, economy, infrastructure and ruling order. The geopolitical dimension of space is followed by the dimension of time due to a physical inevitability. Time is a factor that has steadily gained importance in geopolitics over the past decades as technology has increased. It is therefore hardly surprising that the speed with which a multitude of information is exchanged and disseminated today is an important factor in geostrategic considerations. However, modern geopolitics must take other essential factors into account if it is to be truly effective. These include globally active institutions and ‘think tanks’, environmental influences and climate-related changes, economic issues arising from the globalised world and globally active individuals with considerable influence. In Germany, the term geopolitics was avoided for decades for historical reasons. It was felt that the instrumentalisation by the National Socialists had discredited the term and the empirical considerations behind it. In Germany, with its widespread do-gooderism and tendency to self-mutilate its own achievements, values and history, none seems to realise that this is nonsense. Geopolitics was practised by all great powers such as the USSR, Great Britain, China, and the USA, but none of these powers had the idea of discrediting an entire branch of science, because of the crimes of Stalin, Churchill, Mao or Roosevelt. The term geopolitics and the science behind it simply remain exactly what it is, a science and not a religion or world view. Although the National Socialists may have been the first to implement their policies through geostrategic considerations in a targeted and partially successful manner, but they didn’t invent or develop it further in essential features.
From page 42-43 “Attack on Germany”:
An unimaginable act of terrorism against the Federal Republic of Germany occurred on 27th September 2022. On this day, both Nord Stream pipelines were blown up by unknown persons. It quickly became apparent from the damage that only an elaborate attack, with special military equipment and careful planning, could have destroyed three of the four Nord Stream pipes in this way, at a water depth of about 80 metres. It was now important to present the world with a culprit as quickly as possible. Surprisingly, the Norwegians, who are otherwise rarely involved in major world events, were very quick to find the culprit this time: It was, how could it be otherwise, the Russian himself. At least, that is the opinion of the Norwegian military scientist and naval officer, Ivar Strømmen. According to his account, only Russia had the means and a ‘plausible’ reason to blow up the pipelines, which were financed and laid to a considerable extent by Russian funds. His explanation for this: In this way, Russia wants to create sufficient legitimacy for itself that it is not currently supplying gas to Europe. One can only shake one’s head at such a contrived and incomprehensible explanation. One can safely assume that no serious expert would voluntarily put forward such a ridiculous conclusion without having a specific motivation. What drove Ivar Strömmen to do it? One can only speculate. Without further ado, let’s look at the whole thing through the lens of criminology. In order to commit a crime of any kind, one needs a motive, the necessary means and an opportunity. Who else could be considered for this crime? From this point of view, at least one other suspect suggests itself: the USA. They would definitely have the motive for such a crime. For years, the Americans have been trying in vain to sell their own fracking gas at a high price. There are documents showing that the American government was willing to take the necessary measures in Europe to sell its energy resources. The opportunity was certainly favourable at the time, even if it may seem a little too obvious. The fairy tale that the Russians destroyed their own pipeline is also contradicted by the dense maritime surveillance in the Baltic Sea, especially in the current situation.
From page 85-86 “The current situation in Eastern Europe”:
The eastward enlargement of the EU was a real (financial) blessing for every new member state. None of the new member states had to do or prove much to be accepted into the community. The billions of euros in subsidies flowed sustainably. EU enlargement to the East was not a major problem for the newly formed Russian Federation under Boris Yeltsin in the 1990s, at least not until the current state of affairs. Especially since Yeltsin was a loyal vassal of the USA leadership and gradually robbed himself of his sanity through increasing alcohol consumption. On the one hand, both the Russian and the US side were aware of the shortcomings of the EU. On the other hand, it could have been worthwhile for the Russian economy to cooperate economically in certain areas. NATO’s eastward enlargement and the expansion of the USA missile defence shield were of a completely different quality. It was obvious that it was about the creation and expansion of spheres of interest. The Russians observed the development extremely passively, without themselves taking care to improve relations with their immediate neighbours. In the last 10 years, one could also observe a clear change in Russian rhetoric. With regard to history and the Soviet Union, a certain transfiguration has reappeared among Russians, which can be seen as extremely disconcerting and should be a negative sign for all those who are not categorically hostile to Russia. Comments and formulations such as ‘The Soviet Union was not so bad after all’ and ‘The people were doing well’, ‘nobody was oppressed’ were heard by the author himself from a Russian lady at a reception of the German Parliamentary Society. The reference to the oppression of other cultures, right down to the language, or the deportations to gulags, was dismissed by this person as stupid! Thank God, this is not the view of all Russians, but a disturbing tendency can be heard that could severely impair peaceful co-existence with European neighbours in the future if a rational view of factual history does not take hold here again. Incidentally, it is a good example of Russia’s central problem. A creeping defiance of rejection, mistrust of Russia and a lack of self-critical understanding that far reaching foreign policy difficulties might also be rooted in its own behaviour.
Purchase the book from our webshop if you are in Norway, or directly from the author if you are in Germany.