European and American leaders should send strong message to Russian president: aid to Ukraine will not cease – Scholz
Photo: Reuters
In 2024, Germany will spend more than 7 billion euros ($7.6 billion) on aid to Ukraine, but European allies should also strengthen their support for Kyiv.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz stated this, according to Tagesspiegel.
On Sunday, the Chancellor of Germany, Olaf Scholz, at the congress of his party, the Social Democratic Party, said:
"We want peace. Ukrainians want peace most of all. For this to happen, the first thing is needed – a clear message to the Russian president that he should not count on the fact that our European and American support for Ukraine will decrease," said Scholz.
The chancellor is convinced that Putin hopes that some kind of miracle will happen and that the partners will leave Ukraine alone; that is why he is wasting so many human lives and investing so much in a terrible and utterly senseless war of aggression.
"If our message about riding this out is incorrect, then peace will arrive sooner than we anticipate today," the head of government said.
Given the ongoing debate on providing support to Ukraine in the US, the politician said that:
"We are currently at a very crucial moment."
Many countries have announced military aid in Europe, but it is not enough. The Federal Republic of Germany has allocated more than 7 billion euros for military support in its budget for this year.
"This is much money, but at the same time, it is more than half of what the rest of the European countries do together," the head of government noted.
Scholz recalled that he appealed to his European colleagues to increase and expand their contributions. According to him, it should not be the case that Germany takes on the entire burden, especially if the US fails to vote on the relevant law quickly.
"We stand by Ukraine," the chancellor assured.
He added that Germany is doing this in coordination with partners and allies because acting alone is wrong.
Russia's ugly war is a big challenge for the whole world, but first of all, for Europe, where the continent's largest country has attacked the second largest country to absorb all or at least part of it, Scholz said.
He emphasized the inadmissibility of the strongman having the right to change borders by force and do whatever he wants, regardless of international law.
Scholz emphasized that right-wing and left-wing populists are currently pursuing an anti-European policy. He admitted that such parties are increasingly raising their heads in many European countries, including Germany.
"Nationalists act against national interests," the chancellor emphasized.
He assured that Germany's greatest interest is a strong EU, and as the most powerful state in this community (and the third in the world), Germany must ensure that the EU is strong.
It should be noted that the leader of the liberal party, Minister of Finance Christian Lindner, made the same call for increased aid from European countries to Ukraine.
These days, all German parties hold congresses at which they determine their candidates for the elections and their programs.
For reference:
It should be noted that during the 18th meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group (Ramstein format), German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius announced his country's plans to supply Ukraine with weapons in 2024: air defense systems, tanks, and ammunition.
It is worth adding that a novelty will be the transfer of 6 Sea King Mk41 multi-purpose helicopters with spare parts from the second quarter of 2024 and the training of pilots until then.
The minister recalled that in December, Germany provided another Patriot Phased Array Tracking Radar to Intercept the Target system with 56 guided missiles.
Pistorius also noted that in recent weeks, transports from Germany have been passing through the logistics hub in Poland to Ukraine almost daily.
In general, since the beginning of the full-scale war, military supplies from Germany have amounted to about 6 billion euros, the politician informed.
Preliminary commitments amount to about five billion euros until 2028. In 2024, funds for further military support of Ukraine will almost double to approximately 7.5 billion euros.
