In the long and troubled history between Russia and Germany, another institutional bridge has been dismantled: Moscow has ordered the closure of Germany's consulate in St. Petersburg, severing one of the last formal spaces where the two nations could speak directly to one another. The move follows a contested drone incident in Leipzig and Foreign Minister Lavrov's striking declaration that the exchange of accusations itself constitutes the opening of real warfare. As the EU and NATO pledge to increase pressure on Moscow, what was once a bilateral strain has hardened into something that looks l