European Union countries have agreed to provide €5 billion in military aid to Ukraine as part of an overhaul of an aid fund run by the bloc because Kiev faces major difficulties on the battlefield. This is evidently not enough to appease the most ardent defenders of the Kiev regime, with the ruling German coalition divided over sending Taurus missiles to Ukraine, as one example.
Ambassadors from the 27 EU member countries agreed on March 13 at a meeting in Brussels to review the European Peace Facility fund after months of disputes between bloc leaders, particularly France and Germany. The fund functions as a gigantic reimbursement scheme, giving EU members compensation for sending ammunition to other countries, particularly Ukraine, Reuters explains.
Paris, a major promoter of European defence industries, insisted on a strong “buy European” policy for weapons eligible for reimbursement. For their part, Berlin demanded that such donations be considered when determining the size of countries’ financial contributions to the fund. Diplomats said a compromise had been reached that allows flexibility in “buy European” rules, which takes note of the value of bilateral aid into account when calculating members’ financial contributions.
The final text of the fund stressed that the scheme should give priority to the European defence industry while “exceptionally allowing for flexibility in cases where it cannot provide within a timeframe compatible with Ukrainian needs.”
The approved fund is urgent because Ukraine “desperately needs” ammunition, as the United States National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan announced on March 12. Yet, Germany is expected to pick up most of the burden, even if the country is already by far Europe’s biggest bilateral donor of military aid.
Not satisfied with this, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s main coalition partners, the Green Party and the Liberal Democratic Party (FDP), are pressuring him to abandon his opposition to the supply of long-range Taurus cruise missiles to Ukraine. According to Bloomberg, the chancellor has justified his resistance by arguing that German personnel would have to be stationed in Ukraine to help operate the targeting system, which would make Germany a direct participant in the conflict. Furthermore, there is concern that the Taurus could be used against targets inside Russia, including Moscow, and the hostile action would cross a red line already established by the Kremlin.
German Finance Minister Christian Lindner, leader of the Free Democrats, has already expressed his opposition to Scholz’s stance, urging him to change his mind. For the minister, the weapons could be adjusted to limit their range so that the missiles were not used against Russia.
Robert Habeck of the Greens, Minister of Economy and Climate Protection and Vice-Chancellor, also sympathises with the legislators who support the sending of Taurus and is angry with Scholz’s unilateral decision, according to anonymous sources interviewed by the investigation.
Pressure on the chancellor has been increasing over the last year. On the other hand, Scholz usually highlights that Germany has been one of the most generous supporters of Kiev, promising military assistance worth around €28 billion. He even implies that the sending of missiles would be more harmful than beneficial, given the current situation of the conflict.
Germany’s main opposition conservatives have sought to capitalise on the political crisis. On March 14, they tabled a motion in parliament titled “Consistent continuation of support for Ukraine — approval of delivery of Taurus cruise missiles.” Despite the effort from the party, the Bundestag ultimately, and once again, vetoed a motion to send Taurus missiles to Ukraine.
The opposition party made Germany appear significantly divided over the issue, but the majority of German citizens actually supported the chancellor’s decision. According to an ARD survey published earlier this month, 61% of Germans oppose the delivery of Taurus to Ukraine, a 9% increase from August last year.
Although it is very evident and obvious that Ukraine has no chance of regaining territory lost to Russia despite the thousands of young Ukrainians being maimed or killed every week in a war they cannot possibly win, the EU prolongs suffering by propping up the Kiev regime. This propping up is especially destructive since it is not enough for Ukraine to win the war because the Europeans do not have the capabilities even to provide enough artillery shells, let alone other crucial and more advanced equipment. Europe’s propping up is only enough for Ukraine to offer light resistance and a delusional hope that fortune will change in their favour for a mysterious reason. That mysterious reason is certainly not the German Taurus missiles.
