Change of heart

Change of heart

Today’s English expression is “a change of heart.” If someone has a “change of heart,” the person’s attitude toward something changes.

In late February, Germany had a change of heart with respect to its role in the Ukraine crisis. When Russia was building up its forces on the border with Ukraine, even when it was clear that military action was coming, Germany promised to send Ukrainians 5,000 helmets. The mayor of Kyiv called it an “absolute joke.” What would Germany send next, he asked, pillows?

That may have been a joke, but it was an understandable one. Since the end of World War II, Germany has purposely—and purposefully—not entered foreign armed conflict or sent heavy arms to fight abroad. But in late February, the country, led by its new Chancellor Olaf Scholz, had a change of heart. Its attitude completely changed.

Now, Germany would send lethal weapons to Ukraine. Specifically, Germany sent anti-tank missiles and anti-aircraft defense systems. Furthermore, Germany announced a one-time expenditure of 100 billion euros on defense and it pledged to increase its ongoing defense spending by a third, relative to its GDP.

Weeks ago, Germany was preparing to inaugurate the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, which would bring gas from Russia straight to Europe. Now, that project has been put on hold indefinitely. Sholz also announced he was building two liquefied natural gas import terminals, which will hopefully reduce Germany’s dependence on Russian gas.

This is a change of heart. Before, Germany was sending helmets and planning the cut the ribbon on a new Russian pipeline. Now, it’s sending anti-tank and anti-aircraft systems and planning to buy more gas from elsewhere. That was a change of heart, a change of attitude.

Germany is not the only country to have had a change of heart. The United Arab Emirates had been neutral at the beginning of the invasion, preferring not to get involved. But the UAE, along with Saudi Arabia, had a change of heart, and voted for the U.N. resolution condemning the war. The UAE also said that Ukrainians fleeing the war were eligible for visas on arrival. India is the world’s biggest democracy and is currently on the fence. You can bet the U.S. is engaging in furious behind-the-scenes diplomacy, trying to provoke a change of heart among India’s leaders.

I want to emphasize that a change in plans is not necessarily a change of heart. With a “change of heart,” it’s not enough to just change what you’re doing, you need to change your attitude, change the way you think about something.

For example, I had planned in my head to watch a movie last night. But I got so caught up reading about the Ukraine crisis that I just kept reading all night. That’s not a change of heart; that’s just a change in plans.

Quote of the Week

I normally choose a quote from a famous person long ago, but today’s quote is from Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky. At the beginning of Russia’s war on Ukraine, the U.S. asked the president if he wanted to leave Kyiv for somewhere safer. This quote is not confirmed, but according to people familiar with the conversation, he said: “I need ammunition, not a ride.”

See you next time!

There are hundreds of Plain English listeners in Ukraine. I have corresponded with some of them. They each, obviously, have different situations and different stories. But they are all doing their best to survive, help their families and relatives, and defend their country. The message that comes through from all of them is that they don’t want a war, but they’re under an unprovoked attack from Russia and they’re fighting for their country and to preserve the peace and their way of life.

This is bad. It’s as bad as it gets. If there is one bright spot, though, Volodymyr Zelensky is proving to be the right man at the right time for Ukraine. In a future lesson, we’ll talk about his story, his background, and how he rallied the world for the Ukrainian cause.

For now, though, we’ll end this lesson. We’ll pick back up on Thursday with the response from business and how that’s adding pressure on top of the government sanctions we talked about today. See you back here on Thursday.