At the EU summit in Brussels, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky once again urged German Chancellor Olaf Scholz to deliver ‘Taurus’ cruise missiles. But he stayed true to his position and rejected the demand and large parts of Zelensky’s “victory plan.”
Scholz explained his no to the central points of the Ukrainian leaders’ “victory plan” with concerns about further escalation. We have a responsibility to ensure that the war between Russia and Ukraine does not become a war between Russia and NATO, he said on Thursday evening.
“Don’t think this is the right delivery.”
There is no change in its refusal to supply long-range Taurus cruise missiles. “I don’t think this is a correct statement – and it remains so,” the Social Democrat said.
Zelensky had previously presented his plan for victory over Russia at the EU summit and again publicly called on Scholz to deliver ‘Taurus’ cruise missiles (photo below). According to his idea, an arsenal of deterrent missiles could be a way to force Russia, which invaded the neighboring country in 2022, into peace negotiations.
Scholz also puts the brakes on joining NATO
Another point of the plan is a quick invitation from Ukraine to NATO. Scholz is also on the brakes at this point. In Brussels, the Chancellor once again referred to the resolutions of the recent NATO summit in Washington. In his case, the proponents of a quick invitation could not achieve victory over adversaries such as the US and Germany. The alliance states could only agree to give Ukraine a general assurance that the country could no longer be held back on its path to the defense alliance.
At the same time, the summit statement explicitly emphasized once again that a formal invitation to join could only be issued if all allies agreed and all admission conditions were met. This includes reforms in the areas of democracy and the economy, but also in the field of the security sector. Scholz also spoke out against publicly discussing Zelensky’s plan in detail. This happens internally, he said.
The Chancellor’s criticism of opposition leader Merz
Germany’s opposition leader, trade union faction leader Friedrich Merz, was accused by the Chancellor of inconsistency over his recent statements in the “Taurus” debate. Scholz said he found it “a bit annoying” what the opposition leader in the Bundestag recently did. Before the state elections in Saxony, Thuringia and Brandenburg, Merz remained silent for months. And after the election he expressed himself in the complete opposite direction.
Merz had previously expressed its openness to “Taurus” deliveries under certain conditions. If Russian President Vladimir Putin continues the attacks, a joint decision must be taken in Europe to lift the range limit for Ukraine’s Western weapons, the CDU politician demanded.
If Putin does not give in, he must be told: “If he does not stop bombing the civilian population in Ukraine within 24 hours, ‘Taurus’ cruise missiles will also have to be delivered from the Federal Republic of Germany.” continued Merz.
Source: Krone
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