Chancellor Olaf Scholz has called for confidence in further changes as a result of the Russian war against Ukraine and the climate crisis.

"Now it's not about nostalgically mourning the good old days when so many things were supposedly better," said the SPD politician in a government statement on the upcoming EU summit in the Bundestag. "Now it's about setting out and tackling together so that a good new era is possible." This applies to Germany as well as to Europe.

Scholz pointed out that Germany had made itself independent of gas, oil and coal from Russia in just eight months and had switched the supply. "Nobody had to freeze. There was no economic slump and no decreed shutdown of industrial plants." This shows: "When it comes down to it, we can start and upheaval, speed and transformation." Now it is important to take confidence from this experience.

The heads of state and government of the 27 member states of the European Union will deal with topics such as competitiveness, energy and the Russian war in Ukraine next week in Brussels.