Without US aid, “everything” is in danger
FDP and Greens urge Scholz to deliver Taurus
January 30, 2024, 5:53 a.m
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While the Republicans in the USA are blocking the new aid to Ukraine, Chancellor Scholz continues to hesitate about releasing the Taurus to the country attacked by Russia. The FDP and the Greens are not giving in and are renewing their demand for the delivery of German cruise missiles.
The FDP and the Greens continue to urge Chancellor Olaf Scholz to deliver Taurus cruise missiles to Ukraine. “We should deliver Taurus cruise missiles quickly,” said Bundestag Vice President Katrin Göring-Eckardt from the Green Party to the “Süddeutsche Zeitung”. Germany must “measure itself against what we promised. And we promised that we would provide everything we can and what Ukraine needs,” said Göring-Eckardt. “Taurus is what we have and Ukraine needs now.”
The Green Party politician warned that Russian President Vladimir Putin “will not stop conquering territory if he gets the feeling that it is possible to annex areas of land.” Then he would also attack elsewhere in Europe. “This particularly affects the Baltic states,” said Göring-Eckardt. “But that ultimately endangers us too.”
FDP parliamentary group leader Christian Dürr told the “Süddeutsche Zeitung” that he considered it “sensible and right to support Ukraine with Taurus cruise missiles.” What Ukraine needs is military help to defend itself against Russia. “We must always be clear that in the fight against Putin, Ukraine is not only defending itself, but also the democratic values and beliefs that we share,” Dürr added.
Scholz has been under pressure for months to deliver Taurus cruise missiles to Ukraine. On Sunday, with regard to support for the country, he confirmed that this would continue to be provided “carefully” and “internationally coordinated”. There will continue to be no German “go-it-alone” measures.
Republicans have been blocking new aid for months
Meanwhile, the US government continues to try to dissuade the opposition Republicans from blocking new aid to Ukraine. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said at a meeting with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg in Washington that without additional US aid, “everything” that Ukraine has achieved in the almost two years since the start of the war is at risk.
If the US Congress does not approve new military aid for Kiev, this would send a “strong and false message to all our adversaries that we are not serious about defending freedom and defending democracy,” Blinken said. It would reinforce Putin’s belief that time is on his side.
US President Joe Biden had already asked Congress in October for new aid for Kiev amounting to around 61 billion dollars (almost 56 billion euros). But Republicans have been blocking new military aid for months.