How the big beasts got it wrong

Leading German politicians are trying to wash their hands of responsibility for Russia's aggression in eastern Europe.

Dear Reader,

The “big beasts” of German politics during the Merkel era have given emotional speeches and interviews in recent weeks decrying Vladmir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine.

What they would rather that we forget: many of them spent years seeking to undermine western sanctions against Moscow over its 2014 annexation of Crimea and its arming of separati…