Political processes are intense just before the Catholic Easter in the German capital, with the news late Friday afternoon about the “green light” of the Soltz government in the amount of 2 billion euros for military equipment to third partner countries, in order to in turn enhance their security.
The confirmation came a little later via twitter from the Minister of Finance Christian Lindner, who clarified that this “package” will mainly benefit Ukraine, which in turn will be able to use this money to procure the weapons it needs.
In particular, according to information first broadcast by the German public television ARD, one billion euros are expected to be channeled directly to Ukraine. An additional € 400 million is earmarked for the European Peace Facility, which in turn provides support for military equipment in Ukraine. The total of two billion is expected to come from the supplementary German budget and is not part of the newly established, special fund of 100 billion for the German army.
Decision after pressure to take responsibility
The decision, however, came from the chancellor following intense pressure from Olaf Solz for some time, from both the ruling and opposition parties. A key point of criticism is the greater responsibility towards Ukraine but also the immediate supply of heavy weapons to an attacking country. Although members of the three parties in the ruling coalition hailed the move as a positive step in further supporting Ukraine, there were also critical voices.
The chairman of the Greens’ parliamentary committee on European affairs, Anton Hofreiter, told Welt am Sonntag that this was “a first positive step”, but that it “could not be a substitute for an immediate surrender of arms”. “Anyone who still refuses to supply heavy weapons to Ukraine is working for the Russian attack,” he said, adding that Ukraine was “paying the price for our reluctance and indecision.”
However, Christian Democrat Norbert Retgen, a foreign policy expert who is also critical of the opposition, described the attitude of Soltz and Lindner as “cynical”. Radgen believes that what is missing in Ukraine immediately is not money – which in fact has to go through lengthy parliamentary processes until it is released – but defensive weapons and in fact as soon as possible. “The country can not defend itself with money,” he said.
Dimitra Kyranoudi, Berlin
Source: Deutsche Welle
Source: Capital
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