World politics and the world economy are in a state of disorder that, beyond the realization that world history could be at a turning point, does not allow any reliable conclusions about the future.
This conclusion can be drawn at the end of this year's World Economic Forum - a conclusion that is completely at odds with the gloomy murmurs of conspiracy theorists who see sinister forces behind the Davos meeting working to rebuild the world according to a fixed plan.
The truth is: So much uncertainty was rare.
Gerald Braunberger
Editor.
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In the more visionary part of his Davos speech, Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz outlined the picture of a multipolar world that renounces nationalism and is guided by law and rules.
In this world, economic and technological progress go hand in hand with equality, respect and community spirit, and a willingness to promote sustainability and resilience in order to hand the planet over to future generations in the best possible condition.
These are the visions that people like to hear in Davos, and so Klaus Schwab, the founder and organizer of the forum, was visibly impressed by the Chancellor's "principle speech".
No escaping reality
The reality, however, is in considerable contradiction to the visions.
None other than Schwab made sure that the discussions in Davos could not escape this reality.
The long-standing "Russian House" on the Promenade in Davos, where Russian visitors to the Forum used to hold court, was transformed this year into a "Russian War Crimes House" in which the horrors of the terrible war in Eastern Europe could be viewed.
And while the Russians stayed away from Davos, a sizeable Ukrainian delegation campaigned for the causes of their battered country.
Faced with the reality of war, Scholz's vision of a Europe that was not only economically but also politically united and would have a respectable place in a multipolar world shattered.
This would require a jointly defined foreign policy, which Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte demanded most emphatically in Davos, calling on Germany, France and Italy to integrate their national foreign policy interests into a common European foreign policy interest.
However, this is currently more wishful thinking than reality.
Because with regard to Ukraine, the inner-European ruptures are unmistakable beyond general condemnations of the Russian war of aggression.
Large parts of Eastern Europe, already out of self-interest, supported by Great Britain, the United States, Canada and Australia, are expressing the clear idea: "Ukraine must win the war." This means the restoration of Ukraine's territorial integrity, which Kyiv has also demanded, as well as the conviction that in this war Ukraine is not only defending itself, but all of Europe.