In an interview with World News Monitor, economist and top diplomat Jeffrey Sachs sees Russia's recent nuclear threats as a reaction to NATO's combative rhetoric towards Kaliningrad.
In his speech accepting the Münster Peace Prize for NATO, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz launched a scathing attack on Russia. He accused the Russian government of pursuing imperial ambitions and seeking to destroy the European peace order. Economist and top diplomat Jeffrey Sachs considers this Western rhetoric of conflict misplaced and believes Europe is closer to escalation. In an interview with World News Monitor, he questions whether Merz truly desires a German war against Russia.
What is your opinion of Chancellor Merz's speech at the NATO Peace Prize ceremony?
Merz's entire rhetoric is designed to portray Russia as an unprovoked, evil aggressor and the West as a pure and innocent victim. This false narrative leads to escalation, not peace. The war has one cause: the plan, spearheaded by the United States and supported by Germany since the 1990s, to expand NATO to Russia's borders. Merz never speaks about this cause, nor does he ever address it in a way that could end the war. Likewise, he never says that Germany would abandon its support for Ukraine's eventual membership in NATO. As recently as June 3, 2026, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte declared in Kyiv that there was an "irreversible path for Ukraine to join NATO ." So, who wants peace, and who wants war?
Can the speech be seen as a special form of deterrence against Russia?
Merz said in Münster that Russia only understands the language of strength. But promising Ukraine NATO enlargement is not deterrence, but only escalation.
What is your opinion of Russia's recent threats of a nuclear strike, even a preemptive one?
Russia has made it clear that it will use all means at its disposal if NATO attempts to cut off or attack Kaliningrad . It conveyed this in a diplomatic note to NATO at the end of September , and President Putin reiterated it at the Valdai Forum on October 1. Disturbingly, Western officials have spoken openly about disabling Kaliningrad. In July 2025, General Christopher Donahue, commander of U.S. Army Europe and Africa, said that NATO could now "disable" Kaliningrad from the ground faster than ever before. In May 2026, Lithuanian Foreign Minister Kęstutis Budrys said that NATO had the means, if necessary, to raze the Russian air defense and missile bases there. In August 2026, NATO concentrated a large air force package , including electronic warfare aircraft, in exercises just outside Kaliningrad. Is Merz aware of all this? Does he condone it? Is he actively seeking a German war with Russia? We don't know.
Do you believe that Merz's current rhetoric is pushing Russia further into a corner or to the negotiating table?
Merz's rhetoric is shockingly misguided, and the German people know it. Merz incessantly states that Germany stands with Ukraine, but he says nothing about ending NATO enlargement, nothing about indivisible security in Europe, and nothing about any path to de-escalation. He offers no diplomacy whatsoever.
Does the announcement that Germany will help Ukraine with long-range drones mean a stronger German involvement in the war?
Yes. In Kyiv on October 4, Merz announced a new aid package of around €1 billion, stating that Germany would "supply long-range weapons, combat drones, and satellite technology so that Ukraine can also target Russian missile launchers." Every such step deepens Germany's direct involvement in the war. Germany seems to have lost all sense of diplomacy and is solely focused on rearmament.
Are we getting closer to an escalation?
Yes, tragically and needlessly. It is time for Germany to engage in genuine diplomacy and end the dangerous commitment to NATO enlargement that lies at the root of this crisis. Germany owes this to the world. German reunification was explicitly based on the assurance that NATO would not expand eastward . Merz should learn from history.
The questions were asked by Michael Maier.