BErlin announced on Friday that he wanted to release more than a billion euros in military aid for Ukraine, but without specifying what the money would be used for. These funds are provided for in a supplementary budget for this year. In total, all countries combined, Berlin has decided to increase its international aid in the defense sector “to 2 billion euros” within the framework of this collective budget, “the largest part being planned in the form of military aid in favor of Ukraine,” a government spokeswoman told Agence France-Presse.
This envelope of 2 billion euros “will go mainly to Ukraine”, confirmed on Twitter the Minister of Finance, Christian Lindner, which guarantees kyiv more than a billion euros. The funds are to be used by Ukraine mainly to finance purchases of military equipment.
The German government is seeking in this way to respond to the growing criticism from the Ukrainian authorities, but also from some of its EU partners, such as Poland or the Baltic States, on its apparent lack of support in terms of armaments for kyiv, even its complacency with regard to Moscow. The German head of state, Franck Walter-Steinmeier, thus suffered a diplomatic snub this week when he saw a proposal to visit kyiv, which he had made, refused by the Ukrainian authorities.
Reproaches
The latter accuse the German President, and former Minister of Foreign Affairs, who today has above all an honorary role, of having pursued a pro-Russian policy for years. And they are instead asking for the arrival of Chancellor Olaf Scholz, with the promise of rapid deliveries of heavy weapons in the face of the Russian offensive which is looming in the east of the country.
The Social Democratic Chancellor is however reluctant to authorize such deliveries, such as tanks, taken from German army stocks, for fear of entering into a dangerous military spiral with Russia. He must therefore face the beginning of a crisis within his government coalition, which also brings together environmentalists and liberals. These last two movements are more and more favorable to the delivery of heavy weapons and openly reproach Olaf Scholz for a lack of leadership.
