Since Russia’s attack on Ukraine, the German traffic light coalition has been struggling to find the right course, more or less publicly. Now the collars of important players are bursting.
Disagreements over the issue of supplying German main battle tanks to Ukraine are escalating into public coalition riots. After FDP defense expert Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann publicly attacked Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) in the dispute over the battle tanks, SPD parliamentary group leader Rolf Mützenich told the German Press Agency: “Politics in times of war in Europe are not made in the style of outrage rituals or gasping, but with clarity and reason.”
The chairman of the Europe Committee in the Bundestag, Anton Hofreiter (Greens) told the newspapers of the Funke media group (Monday): “Of course it’s not just about Leopard 2, but this is a crucial support that Germany can offer.” Training of Ukrainian soldiers on the Leopard must begin “right now” so that there are no further delays.
At the Ukraine conference in Ramstein in Rhineland-Palatinate on Friday, Germany had not yet decided to deliver battle tanks to the war zone, despite considerable pressure from its allies. The red-green-yellow federal government has not yet issued any delivery permits to other countries for tanks produced in Germany.
Hofreiter said: “Germany made a serious mistake in Ramstein and lost their reputation as a result. That must now be corrected quickly.”
Agree in hesitation
However, US President Joe Biden is as hesitant as Scholz on the issue of main battle tanks. While the Americans have no objection in principle to supplying main battle tanks, they do not find it practical to provide their own M1 Abrams. The US tanks would first have to be transported across the Atlantic, maintenance is more complex and they consume too much fuel. US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin also announced no battle tank delivery in Ramstein.
In the debate on arms deliveries, Scholz repeatedly emphasized that Germany would not go it alone, but would always coordinate important steps closely with its partners – especially with the USA and France.
Strack-Zimmermann, who chairs the Defense Committee in the Bundestag, described Mützenich on Twitter as “the symbol of all the central misconduct in German foreign policy.” She wrote: “His views of yesterday lead to the problems of tomorrow. He is no longer able to adapt his worldview to reality.”
Criticism of “outrage rituals” and “snarky courage”
On Friday, Strack-Zimmermann attacked the chancellor in the ZDF “heute journal”, which in turn triggered a violent reaction from Mützenich. “Ms. Strack-Zimmermann and others are talking us into a military conflict. The same people who are calling for going it alone with heavy battle tanks today will be screaming for planes or troops tomorrow,” said Mützenich of the German Press Agency. “Politics in times of war in Europe are not made in the style of outrage rituals or gasping, but with clarity and reason.”
Strack-Zimmermann had described the communication, especially from Scholz, on the issue of battle tank deliveries to Ukraine as a “catastrophe”, because on the one hand Germany is giving Ukraine massive support, but the lack of a decision on the battle tanks gives a different impression. She told Tagesschau24 on Saturday: “If you don’t want to deliver Leopard 2, then you have to explain why. Then you have to explain why to Ukraine.”
Bundestag Vice President Katrin Göring-Eckardt (Greens) was also disappointed. “I would have wished that the German government had already cleared the way for the delivery of Leopard tanks this week,” she told the newspapers of the Funke media group over the weekend. “These are urgently needed in Ukraine. Ukraine is not only defending its own country, but also our freedom.”
Defense Minister Boris Pistorius (SPD) told the “Bild am Sonntag” when asked when the decision on Leopard tanks for Ukraine would be made: “We are in very close dialogue with our international partners, especially with the USA Question.” In order to be well prepared for possible decisions, he instructed his house on Friday to “check everything so that we don’t lose time unnecessarily if the worst comes to the worst”. In the interview, he also announced that he wanted to travel to Ukraine as soon as possible, “probably even within the next four weeks”.
Pistorius took office on Thursday after Christine Lambrecht resigned as head of department.
Source: Stern
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