📋 Tender Overview
No day as Foreign Minister has burned into my memory as much as February 24 2022. I had feared the news for days but this morning it became a cruel certainty Russia has invaded Ukraine in a blatant breach of our European peace order .That day changed the world.For the past six months every day has been a matter of life and death for people in Ukraine the survival of their families and their homeland.For the past six months Russia has been using the shortage of energy and grain as a weapon thereby exploiting the worlds poorest.For the past six months Moscow has been blatantly demonstrating that it wants to divide the world into spheres of influence and divide our societies with targeted disinformation. We have to face reality this Russia will remain a threat to peace and security in Europe for the foreseeable future. This sentence may sound harsh. I too wish for nothing more than for this war to finally end. That people no longer die in rocket attacks at train stations that Ukrainian children no longer have to go to school thousands of kilometers from their homeland. And that they can finally hug their fathers in Ukraine again.This desire drives me every day. But this desire alone will not bring peace to Ukraine. Since the illegal annexation of Crimea in 2014 many thought that Putin would stop at some point ultimately in vain. Thousands of Ukrainians and also many young Russian soldiers who are fighting against their will in this war have paid for this principle of hope with their lives. We have a responsibility to act towards these victims.What we experience is a clash of two worldviews. On the one hand countries that believe in a rules-based international order. On the other hand aggressive authoritarian regimes that want to oppress their own population and subjugate others with imperial means.Finland and Sweden never wanted to join NATO. Now they are joining our alliance because they are concerned about Putins Russia.What kind of signal would it be to authoritarian states if we hadnt imposed sanctions and didnt supply weapons That we accept when a regime invades its neighbors No smaller country would be saferThat is why together with my French counterpart I am campaigning in the EU for a strategic reorientation of European Russia policy specifically in four areas.Firstly we are not slacking off in supporting Ukraine. We consistently oppose Russian aggression. And we continue to make it clear Whoever breaks the rules on such a massive scale is internationally isolated.Sanctions are not an end in themselves but an expression of the fact that brutality and rule-breaking have consequences. Invading Ukraine in winter and wanting to send your team to England for the European Football Championship in summer as if nothing had happened that doesnt work.With our sanctions we are curtailing not only Moscows economic capabilities in the long term but above all its military capabilities as well. Secondly we are strengthening Europes ability to defend itself. By investing in modern technology and equipment better coordinating our European defense industries and strengthening NATO s European pillar.Putin is also after our social peace. Therefore our society must become more resilient at all levels. We fight back when Russias troll armies try to undermine our elections and hackers attack our companies with better cooperation between our intelligence services and a common cyber defense. We are already feeling that we were too vulnerable our citizens are paying the bitter price for our years of dependency with their gas bills. That is why we are working to get away from Russian gas and fossil fuels as quickly as possible. Our strongest protective shield against Moscows power games with coal gas and oil is targeted support for people who are concerned that they will no longer be able to heat their homes in winter. At the same time every cent spent on solar cells wind farms and green hydrogen systems is an investment in our security. Third we must invest in our partnerships around the world in a more targeted way than ever before. Our message is We hear you. We stand by your side.To do this we must above all think more strategically about our neighborhood policy in the East. In the Balkans for example we have disappointed the hopes of the people for too long. Eastern Europe is not Russias backyard. It is in our very own interest for Ukraine Moldova and Georgia to join the EU . But Putin is also trying to expand his influence outside of Europe. Putins propaganda machine is particularly aimed at the countries of the Global South. He sends mercenary troops to Mali who trample human rights. He accepts that his grain war threatens to starve countless men women and children in the Horn of Africa at the same time he spreads the false claim that this is a consequence of the sanctions - although there are no sanctions on grain. We expose these lies by the EU communicating loudly honestly and with one voice - and by actively contributing to the food security of the countries of the Global South. Russias support in Africa for example is minimal compared to the EU . What we offer are reliable partnerships and fair investments - instead of military dependencies and restrictive contracts. At the same time we have to acknowledge that there are countries that have been dependent on Russia for decades for example in Central Asia. We should also listen to these countries and make them alternative offers. Otherwise the demand that other nations join us in opposing Russias breach of international law will remain an empty appeal.Fourth we will not leave Russian civil society in the regimes stranglehold. Thats why we want to use channels where young people in Russia can still get objective information. When in doubt platforms such as TikTok or Telegram are more effective than formats such as the Petersburg
