Ukraine emphasizes urgency
Kuleba: Taurus could shorten the war
8/13/2023 3:58 am
While the Chancellery is keeping a low profile on the delivery of cruise missiles to Ukraine, Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Kuleba is urging quick decisions. He rejects concerns that the medium-range weapon could be aimed at targets in Russia.
Ukraine is continuing to put pressure on the German government to supply Kiev with German Taurus cruise missiles for defense against Russia. Ukraine needs them “to save more lives of Ukrainian soldiers and civilians and to speed up the liberation of their territories,” Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba told “Bild am Sonntag”. “The formula is simple: a longer range of the missiles means a shorter duration of the war.” With the weapon, Ukraine could “reach the Russian occupying forces on Ukrainian soil far beyond the front line, disrupt their logistics and destroy command centers and ammunition depots.”
In Germany, too, the pressure on Chancellor Olaf Scholz had increased recently. Politicians from the ruling parties and the opposition demanded that the Ukrainian armed forces be given the weapon system suitable for destroying bunkers and protected command posts up to 500 kilometers away. Proponents see this as another significant step towards strengthening Ukraine’s defense capabilities. There is a critical discussion about whether and how possible strikes against Russian territory can be prevented.
Kuleba refers to experiences
Kuleba tried again to allay concerns about this: “We will only use missiles within our borders to liberate what rightfully belongs to us under the UN Charter and international law,” he said. No previous German decision to supply Ukraine with a new type of weapon has led to an escalation, he said. “On the contrary: German armaments have already saved many Ukrainian lives.”
Earlier this month, Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said the time for a decision had not yet come. Two days ago, Scholz said there was no new situation to report. Meanwhile, Kiev Mayor Vitali Klitschko is urging quick action: “We urgently need long-range missiles like Taurus to hit Russian targets inside Ukraine. We ask that the federal government decide quickly and continue to support our army in its tough fight,” said he the “BamS”.