Minister plans trip to Ukraine
Pistorius: Bundeswehr should become the strongest army in the EU
01/22/2023, 00:01
A few days after taking office, Boris Pistorius announced ambitious plans for the future of the Bundeswehr. In order to achieve this, there are three central tasks. The new defense minister also plans to visit Ukraine in the coming weeks.
The new Federal Defense Minister Boris Pistorius has announced that he will travel to Ukraine as soon as possible. “What is certain is that I will travel to Ukraine quickly,” said Pistorius of “Bild am Sonntag”. This will “probably even happen within the next four weeks,” he added.
Under him as Minister, the Bundeswehr should take the top spot in Europe, Pistorius said. “Germany is the largest economy in Europe, so it should also be our goal to have the strongest and best-equipped army in the EU.”
However, that cannot be done in three years before the next federal election, Pistorius emphasized that it would take a few more years for that. “My job is now to set the course for the turning point to succeed.” Chancellor Olaf Scholz had proclaimed this almost a year ago after the start of the Russian war of aggression in Ukraine.
Minister wants to create trust
According to Pistorius, there are three central tasks that must now be implemented quickly: the procurement of weapons and equipment, the modernization of the barracks and the recruitment of personnel. In addition, the troops must “feel that you trust them and are grateful for what they do,” said the former Interior Minister of Lower Saxony.
When asked when the decision on Leopard tanks for Ukraine would be made, Pistorius said: “We are in very close dialogue on this issue with our international partners, above all with the USA.” In order to be well prepared for possible decisions, he instructed his house on Friday “to check everything so far that we don’t lose time unnecessarily if the worst comes to the worst”.
At the Ukraine conference in Ramstein on Friday, Germany had not yet decided to deliver battle tanks to the war zone, despite considerable pressure from its allies. The federal government has not yet issued any delivery permits to other countries for the tanks produced in Germany.