2024-03-03 15:54:04
The Chancellor has explained his rejection of Taurus missiles: He fears that Germany could be drawn into the Ukraine war. His critics consider this to be pretextual.
A justification given by Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) for his rejection of the delivery of Taurus cruise missiles to Ukraine is causing the debate to flare up again. Coalition politicians from the FDP and the Greens criticized his refusal. SPD parliamentary group leader Rolf Mützenich supported Scholz.
What Scholz’s critics say
The chairwoman of the Defense Committee in the Bundestag, Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann (FDP), told the television station “Welt” that Scholz was wrong in claiming that Bundeswehr soldiers had to be sent to Ukraine to prepare this weapon. “In this case, the programming can take place in Germany, or the Ukrainian soldiers must be taught it here.”
Strack-Zimmermann also addressed fears that the Taurus missiles could be reprogrammed by Ukrainians to attack targets in Russia that Germany would not approve of. There are already a lot of German-made programmed weapons in Ukraine: “If that is the argument, we would have to immediately withdraw all automatic weapons that respond to attacks. I think that is pretextual.”
The Green Bundestag Vice President Katrin Göring-Eckardt also criticized Scholz. “Nobody who demands Taurus for Ukraine wants Germany to become a war party,” she told the editorial network Germany (RND). But: “For peace in Europe and beyond, it is essential that Ukraine wins this defensive battle.” The greatest danger for Ukraine and for Germany’s security remains that Russian President Vladimir Putin retains the upper hand and then continues his imperialist campaign.
Strack-Zimmermann was also irritated by the timing of Scholz’s declaration of his no. Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock (Greens) had just been followed and threatened by a Russian drone during a visit to Ukraine. It is therefore “highly problematic… that “Just two days later, the Chancellor of the Federal Republic rules out using this system – that’s quite remarkable,” she said.
What Scholz’ supporters say
SPD parliamentary group leader Mützenich called on Scholz’s critics in the FDP and the Greens to end the coalition dispute. “Some in the coalition are not thinking about the end. We live in difficult times, many things are unstable. The fact that some people now think that they have to look for personal gains in territory does no one any good. Everyone has to pull themselves together now,” Mützenich told the magazine “Stern”. He himself wanted to create space for the Chancellor to weigh up and make decisions. “Some in the coalition are trying to narrow this space. Unfortunately, the handling of the Ukraine war has also been used for this purpose. It is important that the Chancellor does not give in to this constant pressure,” said Mützenich.
Bundestag member Ralf Stegner from the left wing of the SPD also defended Scholz. “According to surveys, this view also prevails among the majority of the population,” he told the RND.
How Scholz explains himself
Scholz justified his refusal with the risk of Germany becoming involved in the war. “German soldiers must not be linked to the goals that this system achieves at any point or place. Not even in Germany,” he said on Monday at a chief editorial conference of the German Press Agency. From his point of view, the use of Taurus would only be possible with the participation of German personnel. “I’m surprised that some people aren’t moved at all, that they don’t even think about whether what we’re doing could, in a sense, lead to participation in the war,” he said. Scholz had already decided in October not to send the Taurus missiles requested by Ukraine for the time being, but never publicly explained the reasons in detail.
The French and British are programming the Scalp and Storm Shadow cruise missiles they delivered to Ukraine themselves. There is speculation that at least Great Britain has personnel stationed in Ukraine for this purpose; This was never officially confirmed. “What the British and French are doing in terms of target control and the accompaniment of target control cannot be done in Germany,” explained Scholz. “What other countries do, which have different traditions and different constitutional institutions, is something that we cannot do in the same way.”