German leader Olaf Scholz goes into emergency talks on Ukraine on Friday with a new nickname from the Berlin media: the peace chancellor.
For his supporters, the name puts a positive spin on Mr Scholz’s much-maligned Ukraine policy, emphasising his resolve to avoid war with Russia. For his critics, the moniker is a piece of self-serving electoral branding that sums up everything wrong with Germany’s stance on the Ukraine conflict.
Withholding long-range missiles from Ukraine to avoid a confrontation with Moscow has put Mr Scholz at odds with some allies. His meeting with the leaders of France and Poland on Friday is an “emergency and unplanned” effort to restore unity.
French President Emmanuel Macron is pulling in the opposite direction by suggesting Nato troops could be sent to Ukraine, while Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk wants the Berlin talks to “mobilise all of Europe”.
"If, faced with someone who has no limits ... we naively tell them that we will not go further than this or that, at that moment we do not decide peace, we already decide defeat," Mr Macron said on Thursday night.
Mr Scholz has said he is acting in the interests of the German public by “being prudent and weighing things up”, but critics in Berlin and Kyiv accuse him of dithering during the war in Ukraine.
“I think Scholz is much closer to German public opinion on this than the German ‘blob’, the foreign policy establishment in Berlin,” Hans Kundnani, an author on German politics and history at the Chatham House think tank, told The National.
Mr Scholz’s caution “seems politically necessary" and is largely aligned with the US position on the conflict, Mr Kundnani said. “He has to be seen to be forced into this because that’s where the German public is. They’re very, very hesitant on this.”
Eye on history
While Germany does not go to the polls until next year, some observers believe there to be the makings of a re-election pitch in the policy that has driven a wedge between Mr Scholz and France and Poland. One MP asked: “Is there a reason for this change of strategy, or is it a gaffe?"
Mr Scholz leads the Social Democratic Party in Germany. Memories linger of how another chancellor from the party, Gerhard Schroeder, won re-election in 2002 after opposing the march to war in Iraq, dismaying the US and UK.
The term "peace chancellor" was used at that time too – although Mr Schroeder’s brand of camera-friendly, anti-US populism would hardly suit Mr Scholz. The Chancellor also likes to take after Willy Brandt, the late West German chancellor revered in the Social Democratic Party as a Cold War peacemaker.
Mr Brandt warmed relations with the communist eastern bloc, earning him the Nobel Peace Prize in 1971. His policies, known as ostpolitik, are credited by many Germans with paving the way for reunification in 1990.
Mr Brandt's legacy shaped the thinking of Mr Scholz’s generation and dialogue with Moscow became something of a romantic ideal. Mr Schroeder took that rather too far, falling into disgrace for his personal and business ties to the Kremlin.
In 2021, Mr Scholz formed a coalition under the slogan "dare more progress", a play on Mr Brandt’s slogan "dare more democracy". He invoked Mr Brandt’s overtures to the east in his first policy speech as Chancellor.
In doing so, Mr Scholz “certainly hoped to appease his party’s strong left wing, perhaps hoping to remind them of his student activist days", historian Kristina Spohr argued in an essay shared with The National.
Mr Scholz’s difficulties in dealing with Moscow also relate to a “deeply ingrained historical Russophilia” on the much of the left, she said.
The war Ukraine pushed the Mr Scholz’s party into a more hawkish stance on Russia and forced some Germans to admit they viewed Moscow through a rose-tinted lens in an era of business-driven gas deals.
Until 2022, much of the party and Berlin's foreign policy establishment “misremembered ostpolitik as a policy of doing business with the Soviet Union, with this vague hope of democratising it", Mr Kundnani said.
“After the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, obviously there’s a massive crisis of that approach. Now they’ve gone to the other extreme, with a few exceptions," he added. "I think Olaf Scholz does in the back of his mind have a little bit of that tradition, but he’s been pushed so hard by the foreign policy establishment in Germany to completely abandon hope of any kind of co-operation, ever, with Russia.”
Efforts to defend Mr Brandt’s legacy have stressed that he increased West Germany’s defence spending, negotiating from a position of strength. Mr Scholz, in turn, authorised a military upgrade worth more than $100 billion.
Findings this week by an army inspector suggest that effort has some way to go to achieve success after years of budget cuts. The German military lacks tanks and ammunition, and it has an “enormous personnel problem", she said.
Mr Scholz also set aside a German credo of declining to send weapons to conflict zones by approving shipments of air defence missiles, artillery and battle tanks to Ukraine. Sending tanks to fight against Russia was an especially tough pill for Germany to swallow, given the scarring memories of the 1940s.
The line that Mr Scholz is adamant he will not cross involves sending German troops directly into the fighting. He has resisted demands to give Ukraine German-made Taurus cruise missiles, which have a range of 500km, suggesting German soldiers would have to play a part in firing them.
That claim appeared to be contradicted by German military officers in a recording of a meeting leaked by Russia. The incident piled more pressure on Mr Scholz.
But a recent poll showed 61 per cent of Germans oppose the provision of Taurus missiles, including 58 per cent of Social Democratic Party supporters and 84 per cent of those who back the far-right Alternative for Germany party.
In tense exchanges in parliament this week, Mr Scholz shunned support from the rival party, but took criticised “half-truths” around his position as he warned any German troop involvement could drag the country into the war.
Hawkish opposition MP Norbert Roettgen, who has accused the Social Democratic Party of trying to “depict Scholz as a peace chancellor” for electoral gain, suggested the Chancellor of hiding his “true motives”. But Mr Scholz maintains he is on the high road.
“It is about guaranteeing Germany’s security and I swore an oath to do that,” he said.
Abu Dhabi Grand Slam Jiu-Jitsu World Tour Calendar 2018/19
July 29: OTA Gymnasium in Tokyo, Japan
Sep 22-23: LA Convention Centre in Los Angeles, US
Nov 16-18: Carioca Arena Centre in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Feb 7-9: Mubadala Arena in Abu Dhabi, UAE
Mar 9-10: Copper Box Arena in London, UK
Zayed Sustainability Prize
COMPANY%20PROFILE
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EName%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EQureos%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EUAE%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ELaunch%20year%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E2021%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ENumber%20of%20employees%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E33%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESoftware%20and%20technology%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFunding%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E%243%20million%0D%3Cbr%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
CABINET%20OF%20CURIOSITIES%20EPISODE%201%3A%20LOT%2036
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'Brazen'
Director: Monika Mitchell
Starring: Alyssa Milano, Sam Page, Colleen Wheeler
Rating: 3/5
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
The years Ramadan fell in May
Company Profile
Name: Thndr
Started: 2019
Co-founders: Ahmad Hammouda and Seif Amr
Sector: FinTech
Headquarters: Egypt
UAE base: Hub71, Abu Dhabi
Current number of staff: More than 150
Funds raised: $22 million
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The five pillars of Islam
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MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE – FINAL RECKONING
Director: Christopher McQuarrie
Starring: Tom Cruise, Hayley Atwell, Simon Pegg
Rating: 4/5
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
SERIE A FIXTURES
Saturday (All UAE kick-off times)
Cagliari v AC Milan (6pm)
Lazio v Napoli (9pm)
Inter Milan v Atalanta (11.45pm)
Sunday
Udinese v Sassuolo (3.30pm)
Sampdoria v Brescia (6pm)
Fiorentina v SPAL (6pm)
Torino v Bologna (6pm)
Verona v Genoa (9pm)
Roma V Juventus (11.45pm)
Parma v Lecce (11.45pm)
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
How to help
Call the hotline on 0502955999 or send "thenational" to the following numbers:
2289 - Dh10
2252 - Dh50
6025 - Dh20
6027 - Dh100
6026 - Dh200
Expert input
If you had all the money in the world, what’s the one sneaker you would buy or create?
“There are a few shoes that have ‘grail’ status for me. But the one I have always wanted is the Nike x Patta x Parra Air Max 1 - Cherrywood. To get a pair in my size brand new is would cost me between Dh8,000 and Dh 10,000.” Jack Brett
“If I had all the money, I would approach Nike and ask them to do my own Air Force 1, that’s one of my dreams.” Yaseen Benchouche
“There’s nothing out there yet that I’d pay an insane amount for, but I’d love to create my own shoe with Tinker Hatfield and Jordan.” Joshua Cox
“I think I’d buy a defunct footwear brand; I’d like the challenge of reinterpreting a brand’s history and changing options.” Kris Balerite
“I’d stir up a creative collaboration with designers Martin Margiela of the mixed patchwork sneakers, and Yohji Yamamoto.” Hussain Moloobhoy
“If I had all the money in the world, I’d live somewhere where I’d never have to wear shoes again.” Raj Malhotra
SPECS
Toyota land Cruiser 2020 5.7L VXR
Engine: 5.7-litre V8
Transmission: eight-speed automatic
Power: 362hp
Torque: 530Nm
Price: Dh329,000 (base model 4.0L EXR Dh215,900)
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
MATCH INFO
Euro 2020 qualifier
Russia v Scotland, Thursday, 10.45pm (UAE)
TV: Match on BeIN Sports
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
MATCH INFO
Manchester City 4 (Gundogan 8' (P), Bernardo Silva 19', Jesus 72', 75')
Fulham 0
Red cards: Tim Ream (Fulham)
Man of the Match: Gabriel Jesus (Manchester City)
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
The years Ramadan fell in May
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
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Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Strait of Hormuz
Fujairah is a crucial hub for fuel storage and is just outside the Strait of Hormuz, a vital shipping route linking Middle East oil producers to markets in Asia, Europe, North America and beyond.
The strait is 33 km wide at its narrowest point, but the shipping lane is just three km wide in either direction. Almost a fifth of oil consumed across the world passes through the strait.
Iran has repeatedly threatened to close the strait, a move that would risk inviting geopolitical and economic turmoil.
Last month, Iran issued a new warning that it would block the strait, if it was prevented from using the waterway following a US decision to end exemptions from sanctions for major Iranian oil importers.
The years Ramadan fell in May
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The burning issue
The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE.
Read part four: an affection for classic cars lives on
Read part three: the age of the electric vehicle begins
Read part one: how cars came to the UAE
What can you do?
Document everything immediately; including dates, times, locations and witnesses
Seek professional advice from a legal expert
You can report an incident to HR or an immediate supervisor
You can use the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation’s dedicated hotline
In criminal cases, you can contact the police for additional support
The specs: 2018 Nissan Altima
Price, base / as tested: Dh78,000 / Dh97,650
Engine: 2.5-litre in-line four-cylinder
Power: 182hp @ 6,000rpm
Torque: 244Nm @ 4,000rpm
Transmission: Continuously variable tranmission
Fuel consumption, combined: 7.6L / 100km
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
