That means to be obedient, servile, to be in bondage or a slave, etc.

You know, as in “Germany is in bondage to Putin?”

For weeks, Olaf Scholz (63, SPD) has been hesitant to supply Ukraine with heavy weapons. In an interview on Friday, he spoke about his reasons: Concern about World War III and a nuclear conflict.

This has met with sharp criticism not only in Germany, but also in Europe. And in the U.S., too, people are reacting with displeasure to the chancellor’s lurching course. “What must happen for Germany to finally stand up to Russia?” the Los Angeles Times now asks in a commentary.