A year ago, in December 2021, the mood in Germany was subdued.

After almost two years, the topic of Corona still dominated the public discussion.

The measures to combat the pandemic were tightened again at the end of the year, and firecrackers were banned on New Year's Eve.

The economic situation also worried many citizens: As the Federal Statistical Office confirmed at the beginning of January 2022, the inflation rate had risen to 5.7 percent in December compared to the previous year, the highest value in a long time.

The annual average was 3.2 percent.

It was last higher in 1993.

Above all, the prices for petrol and gas had increased significantly.

So it was not surprising that many citizens looked into the new year with unease. The proportion of those who said in the December survey by the Allensbach Institute for Public Opinion that they were looking forward to the coming year with hope was 40 percent of the population, just one Percentage point more than in the previous year, a low value in a long-term comparison.

And yet the situation seemed to be gradually returning to normal.

Despite the acute wave of infections, the corona pandemic was slowly losing its terror.

There was also space for other topics, such as the new federal government.

The monthly article by the Allensbach Institute for Demoscopy in the FAZ dealt with the topic of religiosity.

At the time, only very few could have imagined that only a few weeks later a war would break out in Europe, the consequences of which would make the worries of the months before appear comparatively small.

After the outbreak of war, Chancellor Scholz spoke in the Bundestag of a "turning point in time", and today, ten months later, it is clearly evident that the population actually perceives the year 2022 as a turning point.

This is shown by the results of the current population survey.

When asked whether they would agree with the Federal Chancellor, whether they would also say “that the Ukraine war means a turning point in many respects”, 57 percent of those surveyed answered that they believed the war to mean a turning point.

Only 27 percent thought the term was exaggerated.

For comparison: In December 2001, when asked a similar question, 41 percent described the September 11 attacks on the World Trade Center in New York and the Pentagon in Washington as a "turning point".

When asked specifically whether there had been a turning point in relations with Russia, 67 percent of those questioned in the current survey answered "yes".

66 percent believe that there is a turning point in terms of energy supply.

On the other hand, when asked whether there was also a turning point in terms of equipment for the Bundeswehr, the respondents were unsure.

34 percent believed they saw a turning point, almost the same number (36 percent) denied this.

A strikingly high proportion of 30 percent said they were undecided.

When it comes to the general classification of the situation, the verdict of the population is therefore quite clear.

On the other hand, when it comes to the question of whether the government is drawing the concrete conclusions from this, it is not.