DAccording to Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD), Russian President Vladimir Putin has failed in all of his goals in the war in Ukraine. “Not a single one of Putin’s plans worked out,” said Scholz in a government statement in the Bundestag on Wednesday. Putin had “fundamentally miscalculated”. He believed his troops would overrun Ukraine within days. He assumed that Europe and the democratic West were too divided to effectively help Ukraine. “He thought he could dry up Europe’s solidarity by turning off the gas.”
Putin was wrong – “about the courage of the Ukrainians, about Europe, about us, about the character of our democracies, about our will to resist great power mania and imperialism,” said Scholz. “This is the real story of this year 2022. Ukraine is resisting Russian aggression, but the West has also accepted the challenge.
Scholz: Help for Ukraine will continue
“Together with our friends and partners, we have resolutely supported Ukraine – financially, humanitarianly and with arms. We will continue this support – for exactly as long as it is needed,” affirmed the Chancellor, who at the same time emphasized: “A particularly difficult year is coming to an end in these weeks.” Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine is a terrible turning point.
At the same time, Scholz reaffirmed Germany’s unconditional solidarity with the alliance. “Our alliance partners know very well: they can rely on us. You know: If necessary, we will defend every single square meter of Alliance territory.” Among other things, he referred to the 100 billion special fund for better equipment for the Bundeswehr.
Germany will have up to 17,000 soldiers for the NATO Response Force in this and the next two years and will again take over the leadership of the NATO Rapid Response Force in the coming year. From 2025, Germany will have 30,000 soldiers permanently ready for the NATO armed forces structure, Scholz said. The German Air Force secures the airspace over Estonia, the Navy increases its presence in the Baltic Sea. Germany has permanently strengthened the NATO battle group in Lithuania and is thus improving the defense of the entire Baltic region.
With all these measures, Germany is strengthening the trust of all partners in its willingness to assume responsibility within the alliance, said Scholz. “We have resolutely embarked on this course since February 24. We are staying on this course.”