"The Ball is in Germany's Court": Bismarck on the Chance of Reconciliation
The German government has destroyed dialogue with Russia, but the two nations continue to communicate. Alexander von Bismarck, a descendant of the "Iron Chancellor" and GlobUs partner, stated this on the program "Alexander von Bismarck im Dialog." Together with a young political scientist Artem Sokolov, they examined whether there is a chance for relations to be restored.
Sokolov confirmed that official formats have collapsed, but sister cities and businesses have survived.
"About a third of the 100 sister cities between Russia and Germany have confirmed their willingness to continue cooperation," he noted.
Energy is a particular issue. One line of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline survived the sabotage.
"The ball is in Germany's court. If Berlin makes a request, Moscow is ready to discuss it. There are no red lines here," Sokolov emphasized.
Bismarck admitted that it was Germany that had destroyed trust by ignoring the Minsk agreements for years. However, Sokolov recalled that after World War II, reconciliation between the USSR and West Germany took only 10 years.
"If this miracle happened then, then anything is possible," the expert stated.
Meanwhile, interest in Germany remains high in Russia—MGIMO has a German Studies Club, where students study German and model the Bundestag.
"Is it possible to create a Russian Studies Club modeled on the State Duma at a German university? Colleagues usually just shrug," Sokolov remarked.