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More German weapons for Kiev, no Taurus for now

During a surprise visit to Kiev, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz promised additional support for Ukraine

Dec 3, 2024 07:01 103

More German weapons for Kiev, no Taurus for now  - 1

During his second visit to Ukraine since the start of Russia's aggressive war, Chancellor Olaf Scholz stressed Germany's solidarity with Ukraine. The country can count on Germany, he said. "We say what we do. And we do what we say," Scholz said.

Visit to wounded soldiers

The Federal Chancellor arrived in Kiev this morning after a nine-hour journey by special train from Poland. Together with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, he first visited wounded Ukrainian soldiers hospitalized, and their next stops were the Maidan in central Kiev and the “St. Michael” monastery, where the two honored Ukrainian soldiers who have died since 2014.

The two then watched a presentation of drones, including those from the German manufacturer Helsing, which are capable of hitting Russian armored vehicles on the front.

Weapons deliveries this month

A total of 4,000 such drones will begin to be delivered in December. They are part of the weapons package announced by Scholz by the end of the year. It also includes: two Iris-T air defense systems, ten Leopard 1A5 main battle tanks, 60 infantry fighting vehicles and M80 and M84 armored fighting vehicles, as well as 6,000 unguided and 500 guided missiles.

According to Scholz, additional weapons and equipment worth 650 million will be provided this year. euros of the funds already approved for Ukraine.

NATO membership remains on the agenda

Sholz was last in Ukraine in June 2022, when, together with French President Emmanuel Macron and then Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi, they cleared the way for Ukraine to receive EU candidate status.

However, Ukraine's desire for an official invitation to join NATO remains unfulfilled for now. Against the backdrop of Russia's territorial gains, President Zelensky is increasing pressure in this direction: he warns that an invitation to NATO membership is more necessary for the country to survive. The Ukrainian president expects a decision on this at the meeting of NATO foreign ministers in Brussels tomorrow and the day after tomorrow.

The countries on the eastern flank of NATO, such as Poland and the Baltic states, were in favor of Poland being invited to NATO last year at the NATO summit in Vilnius, but the US and Germany were not yet ready to go that far.

It remains complicated with the "Taurus" missiles

Scholz is pursuing a dual strategy in his policy towards Ukraine, which he presents as a unique advantage of the Social Democratic Party ahead of the early elections for the Bundestag next February. On the one hand, he is involved in supplying weapons to Ukraine so that the attacked country can defend itself against Russia, but at the same time, he is very careful about what assistance he provides to Kiev so that Germany and NATO are not drawn into the war.

On Saturday, Scholz criticized Christian Democratic candidate Friedrich Merz for his statement that if he becomes chancellor, he would supply Ukraine with long-range Taurus cruise missiles. Merz, in turn, accused Scholz and the Social Democrats of deliberately fueling the fear of war in the debate on Ukraine.