"Support for Ukraine in other areas is more important": German defense minister on Taurus supply
Photo: CNN
German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius believes that discussions about supplying Ukraine with Taurus cruise missiles might overlook Kyiv's primary defense needs.
He said sufficient artillery ammunition, long-range missile artillery, and air defense were the truly urgent issues, Rubryka reports, referring to Tagesschau.
"The fact that classified information from the meeting leaked is part of this cacophony. Everyone tries to assert themselves with their behavior, play their own game," Pistorius said.
At the same time, he warned of the harm in debates about Taurus.
"First and foremost, this discussion has been going to extremes for several months. It's the right of anyone who wants it. We shouldn't have reached the point of excluding it once and for all. However, it should be understood that supporting Ukraine in other areas is more important," he said.
Taurus for Ukraine
Ukraine appealed to Germany with an official request to supply the Taurus long-range missiles on May 27 last year.
In November, the manufacturer, MBDA, which owns Taurus Systems, claimed that it could increase the production of Taurus missiles in the shortest possible time and integrate new technical achievements into them simultaneously.
However, German deputies did not support the opposition's proposal to demand that the government transfer strategic Taurus missiles to Ukraine.
However, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz once again spoke out against supplying Ukraine with Taurus long-range missiles. In particular, he believes that if the country gives this weaponry to the Ukrainian Armed Forces, there is a risk that it could drag Germany into a war with Russia.
He explained this by claiming that such deliveries allegedly require the presence of German soldiers on-site.
Scholz also claimed that if the German government provides Taurus missiles to the Ukrainian Armed Forces, they could potentially hit a target in Moscow if used incorrectly.
British Foreign Secretary James Cameron suggested that Germany would transfer Taurus missiles to Britain, and in return, London would provide additional Storm Shadow missiles to Ukraine.
