There was confidence that Germany could never become a war zone again.
(Photo: dpa)
It has been almost exactly a year since Moscow launched an inhuman war of aggression against the Ukrainians. Russian tanks rolled over the border at dawn, and when Germany awoke a few hours later, the feeling of a new world spread. As if the course of time had turned overnight.
We were thirsty for classifications, for explanations of what was happening. And we got that statement just three days later, when our chancellor gave a speech in the Bundestag that made history. “February 24, 2022 marks a turning point in the history of our continent,” said Olaf Scholz. “Turning in time”. A word that seemed to explain everything.
It’s no wonder the phrase has since had an impressive career, being voted Word of the Year. A rhetorical masterpiece by the otherwise rather taciturn Chancellor. Because the “Zeitenwende” provided an explanation for the new German uneasiness in just a few syllables.
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