Germany and Russia: Farewell to Ostpolitik?

Following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz appeared to jettison 50 years of Ostpolitik by pledging financial and military support for Ukraine, sanctioning Russia and promising to spend more on defence. Seven months into the war, progress on the German Zeitenwende (turning point) is mixed. Germany has sustained far-reaching sanctions and is grappling with weaning itself off Russian energy, but military deliveries to Ukraine have been slow. The German public continues to support Ukraine, but as winter approaches that support could erode, since Russia has tied future gas deliveries to the lifting of sanctions.