UPDATE - World is moving into phase of confrontation, German president warns

UPDATES WITH MORE COMMENTS FROM GERMAN PRESIDENT, EDITS THROUGHOUT

BERLIN (AA) – The world is moving into a phase of confrontation, and harder years lie ahead for Germany, President Frank-Walter Steinmeier said on Friday.

In a major speech, Steinmeier warned about the severe consequences of the Russia-Ukraine war and underlined that Germany will have to face new and difficult challenges.

“The 24th of February was a turning point in history,” Steinmeier said, referring to the start of Russia’s war on Ukraine, adding that the war ended an era of peace and stability which Germans profited from greatly.

He condemned Russian President Vladimir Putin’s plans and said the war in Ukraine “has reduced the European security order to rubble” and sparked fears of nuclear escalation.

“With his imperial obsession, the Russian president has broken international law, challenged borders, committed land grabs. The Russian attack is an attack on all the lessons the world had learned from the two world wars,” said Steinmeier.

The German president said the consequences of the war, new security threats, energy crisis, and inflation have greatly challenged Germany’s successful economic model.

“I believe many of the concerns are valid. We are experiencing the deepest crisis since the reunification of Germany,” he said.

“It’s a time of severe economic turmoil, energy crisis and skyrocketing prices. A time in which social cohesion, trust in democracy, and even more – trust in ourselves – has been damaged.”

Steinmeier called on the public to show solidarity to get through this difficult period.

“Despite all our worries, let’s not forget right now: We are economically strong, stronger than many others. We have good research institutions, strong companies and an efficient state,” he said.

- Germany wary of new bloc confrontation

The German president underlined that Berlin will cut its dependency on Russian gas and oil, and adapt to new challenges by taking the necessary steps, but will not end its efforts to promote international dialogue and cooperation.

“A new bloc confrontation, a division of the world into ‘us against them’ is not in our interest,” he stressed.

“Yes, we must reduce our vulnerability, reduce one-sided dependencies. But that doesn’t mean less networking with the world, but more,” he added.

Steinmeier also reiterated that Germany will assume more responsibility for European security and strengthen its armed forces.

“We must become capable of handling conflicts, both internally and externally,” he said.

“We don't need a war mentality – but what we do need is spirit of resistance and resilience,” he added.