Friedrich dvoliky: the future German Chancellor wants to supply Kiev with Taurus missiles

The leader of the German conservatives from the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), the likely German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, announced his readiness to supply long-range Taurus missiles to Kiev in coordination with European allies. This decision is not supported by his junior coalition partners, the Social Democrats. Meanwhile, the Kremlin warned that this would only lead to an escalation of the conflict in Ukraine. Details can be found in the Izvestia article.

Transfer the missiles

"The British are doing this [supplying Kiev with cruise missiles], the French are doing this, the Americans are doing it anyway," Friedrich Merz, leader of the conservative Christian Democratic Union, said on ARD television, answering a question about his readiness to transfer Taurus long—range missiles to Ukraine.

According to him, the supply of weapons is planned to be coordinated with European partners, and if this happens, "Germany should participate." The politician also added that "Ukraine needs a strategic offensive capability, including strikes on the land corridor between Russia and Crimea."

According to the ZDF TV channel, during the election campaign, Merz, although he took a tougher stance than the current chancellor Olaf Scholz, was more restrained in his comments about Taurus. In particular, he stated that Kiev should receive "the systems necessary for defense, including cruise missiles," however, he did not specify which systems were in question.

Photo: TASS/ABACA

On April 9, it became known that the CDU/CSU bloc and the Social Democratic Party of Germany had signed an agreement to form a coalition. It does not mention the delivery of Taurus missiles to Kiev.

The current head of the German government, Olaf Scholz, who will finish his duties in early May, when Friedrich Merz becomes chancellor, has repeatedly rejected requests from the Ukrainian authorities to transfer the Taurus to Kiev. The SPD politician explained his decision by saying that he would not allow Ukraine to strike deep into Russia, and also feared an escalation that "could lead to a war between Russia and NATO." Missiles with a range of about 500 km can reach Moscow from the territory of Ukraine.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov called Scholz's position, for which the Chancellor was repeatedly criticized in the Bundestag, responsible, and stressed that it differs from the position of the French or the British.

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The Social Democrats are against

Friedrich Merz has recently shifted the focus from the Ukrainian conflict to Germany's domestic politics amid the elections, and the issue of Taurus supplies seemed to have receded into the background. However, after concluding an agreement on the creation of a coalition, the CDU leader decided to return to it.

Meanwhile, as Bloomberg reports, Merz's plan for Ukraine has already exacerbated disagreements within the German coalition. Until April 29, SPD members will vote on the coalition agreement, however, according to the agency, "it has already been overshadowed by public bickering."

Friedrich Merz, leader of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU)

Photo: REUTERS/Annegret Hilse

Boris Pistorius, the acting German Defense minister representing the SPD, who may retain his position in the future, was very skeptical about Merz's statement. At the SPD conference in Hanover, he drew attention to the fact that there are arguments in favor of supplying such weapons to Ukraine, but there are also "many arguments, weighty arguments" against.

Pistorius also denied the prevailing opinion in Germany that he allegedly always advocated the transfer of Taurus missiles to Kiev. Commenting on Merz's words that the missiles could be transferred after an agreement with the allies in the European Union, he stressed: "I do not know of any European partner with such a [missile] system. So the approval is still an issue."

Photo: TASS/ABACA

However, despite the fact that such decisions are made with the consent of the coalition's allies, the Chancellor has the last word. In the European Union, Merz's position was supported by Poland, the Netherlands and France. Hungary and Slovakia opposed it.

Russian Presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov said such a move would inevitably lead to a further escalation of the Ukrainian conflict. "We see similar positions in other European capitals. Unfortunately, indeed, European capitals are not inclined to look for any ways out of peace negotiations, but rather are inclined to continue provoking the continuation of the war," the Kremlin spokesman said.

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What do the experts think

Artem Sokolov, a senior researcher at the MGIMO Institute of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia, noted in an interview with Izvestia that the government of Friedrich Merz would continue the course of the "traffic light" coalition in support of Ukraine.

"Berlin will seek to synchronize its actions with the United States and other NATO partners and is unlikely to take on additional responsibility and costs if it goes against the principle of transatlantic solidarity," the German believes.

According to him, the Social Democrats generally share the CDU's approach. Germany will strive to maintain a high level of defense spending.

Photo: Global Look Press/Senior Airman Faith Schaefer

Natalia Eremina, a professor at St. Petersburg State University, notes in a conversation with Izvestia that the issue related to the possible supply of Taurus missiles by the future government of Friedrich Merz is quite complex and controversial.

— It not only directly affects the international situation, relations with Russia, and the prolongation of the conflict in Ukraine, but it will also significantly affect domestic politics. We are now seeing how the issue of arms supplies and financial contributions to Ukraine is actually causing active protests in certain regions of Germany, primarily in the east of the country," the expert explained.

In her opinion, there may be many inter-party and intra-party conflicts in this context.

— There is no single point of view in the same Social Democratic Party, and there is a situation in which the decision on arms supplies is made not so much by individual members of the government as under pressure from EU and NATO partners, — the expert is sure.