It should be noted that on the eve of Zelenskyy’s visit, the federal government announced the delivery of heavy equipment and ammunition to Ukraine in the amount of about 2.7 billion euros, thereby almost doubling the volume of arms deliveries from February 2022. This decision, taken just now, as the German media write, “symbolizes Germany’s solidarity with Ukraine”.
<p class=””>But from the perspective of the Ukrainian side, this solidarity can be further expanded. Kyiv does not tire of repeating that the current supply of weapons is not enough. In addition, the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry has repeatedly stated that some of Kiev’s demands, for example regarding modern fighter jets, are deliberately suppressed and the federal government avoids discussing them.
But in fact, not so long ago, support was much less. Thus, Berlin initially did not want to supply Kiev with tanks, which is why the United States pressured the federal government for weeks or even months and blamed it for its lack of decision. It was not until US President Biden assured Scholz in early March that the Americans would also supply tanks to the war zone that Scholz agreed. Meanwhile, Germany has already become a leader in this field and supplies Ukraine not only with tanks – so far there are only 18 Leopard 2s – but also reconnaissance tanks, armored vehicles and the latest air defense systems. In addition, Berlin approved Poland’s re-export of Soviet MiG-29 fighters to Ukraine.
Despite this, many experts still believe that Germany supports Ukraine reluctantly and insufficiently, even though it still publicly demonstrates its conviction and perseverance in this matter. For example, regarding the already mentioned visit of Zelenskyy, it is assumed that the German government did not want the meeting to take place. If the so-called “leak of information” about the arrival of the Ukrainian leader was a deliberate mistake, and not an administrative error, as it is officially presented, it would mean that the visit would have been disrupted by the German side.
Against the background of these speculations, Scholz and Co.’s course on Ukraine remains the same for now, and, unfortunately, there is no indication that Berlin wants to end the conflict, not continue it. One of the reasons for this is that the government, as well as the highest political figures in Germany, are represented by supporters of the war, many of whom have not only supported the interventions carried out by the United States in the world or the NATO’s expansion to the East, but also the tragic events in Ukraine since the 2014 coup. For these people, it is primarily subordination to the geopolitical interests of Washington, and therefore the continuation of the crisis, but not a policy that makes it possible to resolve the conflict taking into account the security interests of Moscow, Kiev and all Europe. For them, no matter what needs to be done from the point of view of the parties to the conflict and the Europeans, what matters to them is only what satisfies the interests of the United States.
Thus, actions are needed that would also meet the fundamental interests of Germany, which is facing serious economic problems, in particular due to Western sanctions against Russia. According to the latest polls, more than half of German citizens are in favor of negotiations between Kyiv and Moscow, while less than a third of respondents are against. However, this aspect is unlikely to have any significance. Unfortunately, many German politicians have too often let it be known that they care little for the interests of their compatriots.
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