Annalena Baerbock (Greens) created facts. At least that’s how it seemed when the news ran across the ticker on Sunday evening that, according to the Foreign Minister, Germany would not prevent other countries from supplying Leopard tanks to Ukraine; because the tanks are German-made, the government has to agree.
Her statement was probably a solo effort, apparently she did not coordinate her position with Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD). That’s unusual. The behavior of the foreign minister, who rushes past the chancellor, is outrageous. Especially when it comes to such an important question. But precisely because the question is so decisive, it can also be correct.
For weeks, the pressure on the federal government has been growing to supply main battle tanks itself or at least not to block the delivery of German tanks from abroad to Ukraine. The FDP defense politician Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann described the Chancellor’s communication on this issue as a “disaster”.
Baerbock’s statement shows that not everyone in the cabinet agrees with the chancellor’s style of communication or his decisions. She makes that clear publicly. The Foreign Minister was in Kharkiv in eastern Ukraine two weeks ago. The city had been besieged and shelled by Russian soldiers for months. No other German cabinet member was so close to the front.
Russia must not win this war
Scholz, on the other hand, communicates as sparsely as possible, although he could have good reasons for his hesitant attitude. Fear of nuclear power Russia, for example, which could use tactical nuclear weapons. Or the concern that the United States no longer takes its role as a nuclear power as seriously as it did during the Cold War.
But there are also arguments against it. According to NATO, Russia is planning a major offensive in the spring. The Germans are obviously struggling with a European leadership role, which is one of the reasons why the West seems increasingly divided on the issue of support. But Ukraine must defend its country. It is also in the interests of the European Union that Putin does not win this war. But how is Ukraine supposed to fight Russia without the right weapons?
Apparently Baerbock thinks so too. Already in the summer she said: “Our weapons help to save lives.” Her statement now could be her ultima ratio. To put pressure on the chancellor to speed up the debate and break with German hesitancy. And, after all, to help Ukraine.
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Source: Tagesspiegel
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