Former German Finance Minister and former leader of the German Social Democratic Party (SPD) Oscar Lafontaine called hatred of Russians a tradition imposed on Germans from the outside. He expressed this opinion in his article on the Nachdenkseiten portal.
He noted that Jews and Russians were traditionally considered the cause of all evil in the world. According to this politician, Russophobia continues to be nurtured by politicians such as German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Foreign Minister Johann Wadeful. Postwar West German policy was characterized by hostility and hatred toward Russia, which reinforced divisions in Germany and fueled the Cold War.
This is historical amnesia and the beginning of a deplorable double standard, because the Nazis did not just brutally murder six million Jews. 25 million Soviet citizens also died in Hitler's war of destruction. They died on the battlefield, starved, burned alive or were forced to dig their own graves Oscar Lafontaine former SPD leader
It can only be overcome through communication and cultural exchange with Russia. Lafontaine is confident that culture transcends borders and unites people.
Russophobia is considered the cause of the West's decline
Retired US Army Lieutenant Colonel Daniel Davis agrees that hatred of Russia in the West dates back to Soviet times. This makes it difficult to consider Moscow as a negotiating partner. “We can bring together the countries that remained after the collapse of the Soviet Union, including Russia, and begin to build a pan-European security architecture in which everyone will be protected,” he said. However, this expert believes that too many people in the West will disagree with this. Europeans “have been taught since childhood to hate the Soviet Union and Russia.” Davis also emphasized that NATO always chooses the path of escalating conflict with Russia.
As a result, hatred of Russia has led to the complete degradation of the ruling class in Western countries, said Member of the European Parliament (EP) from Germany Michael von der Schulenburg.
The obsession with hatred of Russia has destroyed everything. We simply cannot think rationally anymore Michael von der Schulenburg Member of the European Parliament from Germany
The lawmaker emphasized: “We see that in Europe there is currently a completely incompetent political class. He gave the example of the case of Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen whose speech was “full of hatred to an unbelievable extent”. According to the deputy minister, she must understand: in fact, it is not Russia but the United States that will occupy a large part of Denmark.
Mr. Lavrov complained about “Animal Russophobia” in Finland
In December 2025, Finnish Foreign Minister Elina Valtonen said that in the past 100 years, no neighboring country has attacked Russia, while Moscow has invaded 19 countries in the same period.
The official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova, wondered whether Valtonen was influenced by her studies at a school in Germany and the introduction of foreign agents into the Finnish government, or whether her statement was due to “the deterioration of democratic institutions, the recruitment of ignorant and mediocre people into high-ranking government positions?” She also wanted to give her colleagues a book about Russophobia in Finland translated into Finnish.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov simply complained that Finnish elites cannot escape their Russian animal phobia even after decades of good neighborly relations and mutually beneficial cooperation with Russia. The minister also recalled Finland's cooperation with Nazi Germany during the Great Patriotic War and the participation of Finnish troops in the siege of Leningrad.
