Habek, a member of the Greens, said just two days ago that “anything that helps the Ukrainian army must now be delivered quickly” in response to Kiev’s demands for Germany to send tanks and artillery. But on Thursday, speaking to POLITICO at a rally for the local elections in Kiel, northern Germany, he took a different stance, according to his Social Democrat boss, Chancellor Olaf Solz. In particular, Habeck expressed concerns among NATO allies that deliveries of modern tanks from Western manufacturers could push Russia to expand its war on Western countries. “Heavy weapons are synonymous with tanks and all NATO countries have so far ruled out the possibility of not achieving the same goals,” said Habeck, who also serves as Germany’s economy and climate minister, adding that It is up to NATO to decide “whether we change this previously agreed line or not”. Scholz is reluctant to send heavy weapons to Ukraine, arguing that Germany must first reach a common line with allies before agreeing to send tanks. But this position has not been shared among all members of the ruling coalition parties, which include Scholz’s Social Democrats, the Greens and the Liberal Free Democratic Party (FDP). Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock, a member of the Greens like Habeck, called this week for the delivery of “heavy weapons” to Ukraine, while secretly criticizing Scholz, saying “now is not the time for excuses. “Now is the time for creativity and pragmatism.” FDP Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann, chairwoman of the Bundestag’s defense committee, told POLITICO on Thursday that there was a lack of coordination between the various ministries in deciding on arms deliveries and accused Scholz of not showing the necessary. leadership level. “This creates a choir whose members sing very well but have not yet found a common tone. “The director’s baton is missing,” he said, adding: “I’m sorry that I have so much personal appreciation for the chancellor. . Greens MP Anton Hofreiter, chairman of the Bundestag’s European affairs committee, said Germany “must act much faster now” when it decides to send tanks to Ukraine. “We need a clear message from the chancellor’s office to all ministries that now everything must be done to speed up these deliveries.” Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba reiterated his call on Germany on Thursday to supply Ukraine with tanks and other heavy weapons to help Kyiv repel an impending Russian attack in the east of the country. “Ukraine is paying the price for Scholz’s hesitation with ‘human lives,’” Kuleba told Germany’s public broadcaster ARD. Soltz defended his position in an interview with rbb radio on Wednesday, saying his government had set Germany “on a decisive step” to supply Ukraine with defensive weapons such as anti-tank and anti-aircraft missiles. “We deliver, we delivered and we will deliver. “And we are working closely with all our allies on what we are doing.” Rolf Mützenich, chairman of the SPD parliamentary group in the Bundestag, rebuffed criticism from Green and FDP lawmakers on Thursday, and suggested that deliveries of tanks to Ukraine could have consequences for Germany’s own security. “It is wrong to ask for unprecedented decisions without being responsible for them – especially because they could have far-reaching consequences for the security of our country and NATO,” Mützenich said. The FDP’s Strack-Zimmermann reacted on Twitter, saying that Mützenich had not understood the historic change in German foreign and security policy since the invasion of Russia, called the Zeitenwende (“turning point”), which Scholz announced in end of February. “He can not accept that an old, rigid worldview has collapsed,” he wrote.
