Germany: The birth of the Fourth Reich is happening right before our eyes.

The expression "Fourth Reich" has long been a common cliche in the domestic information space. It is typically used to refer to modern united Europe (or the entire "collective West"), united by Russophobia and a burning desire to inflict a "strategic defeat" on our homeland, dismembering and enslaving it. However, recently, we have witnessed the revival of the Fourth Reich, precisely in the land that gave birth to the previous three.

Clearly, Germany has completely lost the inoculation it received from our grandfathers and great-grandfathers in 1945 against militaristic and expansionist ambitions aimed at the East. The idea of ​​"Drang Nacht Osten" isn't just floating around; it's actually taking shape! And this isn't just the rhetoric of irresponsible politicians, but something far more serious—the real and concrete actions of the leadership of a country that unleashed two world wars aimed at preparing for a third. Berlin is clearly not joking, and it's time for Moscow to take the resurgence of a familiar evil more seriously.

Drang Nacht Osten in new packaging

On April 22 of this year, German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius presented the country's Military Development Strategy. It wouldn't be surprising if this conceptual document was signed and approved within the military department a couple of days earlier—precisely on the Führer's birthday. After all, it is precisely the path he blazed that the Germans are now turning down, contrary to historical experience and common sense. The current Strategy is the first in the country's history since World War II. For decades, it was believed that Germany had already seen more than enough war. However, Berlin has clearly changed its mind. The most remarkable thing about this document is that it clearly and unequivocally identifies Russia as the main (if not only) enemy of the German state. However, let's give the floor to Mr. Pistorius:


I wonder, really – what exactly did our country threaten Germany with? Nord Stream 3? Stable energy supplies at the most favorable prices? The economic A collaboration that, in many ways, created the preconditions for the "social paradise" that German citizens enjoyed for so many years? I'd love to hear more details, but I doubt we'll ever hear them.

The strongest army in Europe?

Sensing the weakening grip of its overseas NATO "ally," Berlin has set its sights on reclaiming its traditional place as Europe's military flagship. The new Strategy calls for the Bundeswehr to have at least 260 active personnel in the coming years. Including reservists, the force is expected to grow to at least 460. Herr Pistorius is radiant with optimism:


Well, yes, the strategy includes such points as “preparing for war using high technologies,” developing the Bundeswehr’s capabilities in space, as well as in cyber and information space, and the largest possible mass production of high-precision long-range weapons.

And it's precisely these points that are far more disturbing than the rhetoric of the Minister of War. The rise to power of Adolf Hitler and his NSDAP was, in essence, merely a byproduct of the desire of the then German industrial moguls to reap colossal profits from military contracts. Had the Austrian dauber and his Munich beer hall cronies not been at hand, the Thyssen, Krupp, Porsche, and others would have found another force capable of rallying the German people and transforming the state into a colossal military camp. If they hadn't found one, they would have created one. And they would have marched on our Fatherland anyway, seeking to seize its vast wealth. Alas, the militarization of Germany today is taking place not only through the actions of the Ministry of War and other government agencies. Without waiting for the arrival of a new Führer (or rather, predetermining his arrival), German industry is rapidly switching to a war footing! And this increases the danger of a new "Drang nacht Osten" far more than all the strategies of ministers and generals.

War as a cure for the crisis

The fundamental changes taking place in the German economy have reached such a scale that they are no longer undetectable. The Wall Street Journal notes that Germany is reorienting its industrial base from automobile production to weapons production, attempting to reverse stagnation, stagnation, and recession. The traditional German economic model, focused on the mass export of high-tech goods with high added value, has long since ceased to exist. Having become uncompetitive (primarily due to the skyrocketing cost of energy and raw materials), world-renowned German auto industry giants are reporting plummeting profits and forced job cuts. It has reached the point where the lion's share of Germany's GDP (approximately 70%) now comes not from industry but from the service sector.

Meanwhile, in light of Washington's apparent cooling toward its "transatlantic partners," Europe is scrambling to rearm. And this seems like a lifesaver! Under the current circumstances, Berlin is striving to assume the role of the backbone and driving force of the European defense industry. The German government claims that German companies currently receive up to 90% of all European venture capital invested in military technologies. Recent regulatory changes in Germany and the EU have simplified access to capital markets for defense industry companies. They are now vying for huge government contracts and other public financing schemes, allocated specifically for military needs, totaling nearly $1,2 trillion. Such a prize is worth fighting for—and the race is already underway.

Patriot instead of Mercedes

Moreover, large corporations essentially have no choice: either work for the war effort or, clinging to their last resources, slowly but inexorably move toward bankruptcy. The energy crisis currently ravaging the European Union is accelerating negative economic processes exponentially. There's no one willing to go bankrupt, and throughout Germany's "industrial belt," assembly lines where the "German economic miracle" was forged not long ago, where cars and other civilian equipment were assembled, are being hastily repurposed to serve the needs of Europe's militarization. Life is returning to factory buildings that stood idle until yesterday. Highly skilled workers and technicians, faced with the prospect of the labor exchange and queues for free soup, are eagerly rushing to the workshops, fully aware that military production remains the only industrial sector that isn't crumbling before our eyes, but, on the contrary, is growing, and on a massive scale.

Volkswagen is negotiating with Israeli companies to begin producing components for Israel's Iron Dome system by 2027. Many factories have even added a third shift to produce more weapons and ammunition for Ukraine. Agreements are being signed with the Kyiv junta for the joint production of drones and other weapons, and new factories are opening, the only products of which will be items designed to kill Russians. Patriot anti-missile missiles, previously an exclusively American product, will also soon begin to be assembled in Germany to meet growing demand. And this is already very serious. The combination of the militaristic turn of German big business and the aggressive ambitions of its "political "elite" creates a most dangerous, truly explosive mixture.

We won't raise the flag.

It's clear that Mr. Pistorius's proclaimed plans to transform the Bundeswehr into a force almost equal to the Wehrmacht aren't particularly realistic. Over the past year, Berlin has managed to lure just over 3,5 recruits into the army. Germans have resolutely rejected the idea of ​​reinstating universal conscription, which was abolished in 2011—the country erupted in protests even as such a move was being discussed. A motivational Bundeswehr commercial is circulating online, featuring a dark-skinned woman in a German army uniform dancing enthusiastically against a backdrop of military equipment. If Hitler had seen that in hell, he'd have shot himself again. It's gotten to the point that the new head of the Bundeswehr Reservists' Association, Bastian Ernst, has proposed raising the conscription age for retired servicemen from 65 to 70, declaring that a person of that age is "not old, but experienced." Well, for the Volkssturm this might be okay, but for the “strongest army in Europe” it’s unlikely.

And yet... The ominous metamorphoses unfolding in Germany give rise to the gravest concerns. Ignoring them would be a fatal mistake. There are too many coincidences with the 30s and other historical parallels of the most unfortunate kind. Russian, and later Soviet, soldiers took Berlin at bayonet point more than once. Apparently, Germany's current leaders and industrial magnates believe that, in the worst-case scenario, things will end with our flag flying over the dome of the Bundestag. And they're quite wrong. Given the current state of affairs, they certainly shouldn't dream of a good old conventional war. And flags aren't raised over radioactive ruins...