“Really said everything”
Scholz annoyed by the debate about fighter planes
01/30/2023, 02:30 am
SPD leader Esken does not fundamentally reject a possible delivery of military aircraft to Ukraine. Chancellor Scholz, on the other hand, reacts with incomprehension to the discussion about further arms deliveries and again warns of a “bidding competition”.
Chancellor Olaf Scholz has criticized the debate over the delivery of fighter jets to Ukraine. “It’s idiosyncratic that this debate is being held. Some people have to ask themselves why they’re asking the question when it’s about helping the Ukrainians,” said Scholz at a press conference in Santiago de Chile. A serious debate is now necessary and not “an outbidding competition (…), in which perhaps domestic political motives are in the foreground instead of supporting Ukraine.”
In an issue as important as arms deliveries, it must be about the matter and rational considerations, emphasized Scholz. He recalled that shortly after the war began, he and US President Joe Biden ruled out no-fly zones because that would have led to a conflict between Russia and NATO. “Such nonsensical requests” as the deployment of ground troops were also rejected. “Everything has really been said about this, including me,” emphasized Scholz.
The discussion last year about a no-fly zone over Ukraine was about the fact that this could only be enforced if NATO provided its own fighter jets. Scholz and Biden rejected that. However, the current discussion is about making combat aircraft available to Ukraine, which would then be flown by Ukrainian pilots.
Ukraine is demanding fighter jets, and the United States has not fundamentally ruled out a delivery. The SPD chairwoman Saskia Esken did not fundamentally reject the delivery of combat aircraft on Sunday in the ARD. Scholz said a few days ago in the Bundestag on the debate about further arms deliveries to Ukraine: “I made it clear very early on that it was not about combat aircraft and I’m doing that here too.” When no-fly zones were discussed shortly after the start of the war, he and Biden said: “We will not do that. And nothing has changed in this attitude and nothing will change.”