Britain has apparently suggested that Germany supply cruise missiles to Ukraine through a ring swap. Defense Minister Pistorius says he is not involved in such discussions. Critical voices are increasing in the traffic lights.
Federal Defense Minister Boris Pistorius (SPD) has expressed reservations about plans for a ring swap in which Germany would give Great Britain “Taurus” cruise missiles and Ukraine would receive British “Storm Shadow” systems in return.
“I don’t know anything about this offer,” said Pistorius in an interview with the “Bild” newspaper, Welt TV and the online magazine Politico. If there were to be discussions about this with the Chancellery, they would have to determine “whether this is viable or not.” Pistorius said he was not involved in these possible discussions.
The offer has apparently been available for a few weeks
Germany currently does not want to deliver the long-range “Taurus” cruise missiles to Ukraine. The Defense Minister confirmed this in the interview. The British government therefore suggested exchanging rings.
The federal government did not want to comment on the proposal. The British Ministry of Defense said only that it was working with partners to equip Ukraine as best as possible. According to media reports, the British offer to Berlin has been available for a few weeks. According to dpa information, France would also be a possible exchange partner.
Scholz rejects direct delivery cruise missiles away
Great Britain and France are already supplying Ukraine with cruise missiles that can reach targets on the Russian-occupied Crimean peninsula, far behind the front line. Chancellor Olaf Scholz has rejected this, citing, among other things, the lack of coordination with the USA. He pointed out again on Wednesday that Germany supplies more than half of the military aid of all EU partners. There are also fears in Berlin that Ukraine could also attack Russian territory with “Taurus”.
Pistorius emphasized that “Taurus” is a weapon system that is not comparable to cruise missiles from other nations. “And that’s why you have to carefully consider the conditions under which you do this. And at the moment there is no new status on this.” The Federal Minister of Defense did not rule out a change in Berlin’s attitude in the future.
A lot of criticism of the ring exchange plan
The ring exchange plans met with criticism from the Union. “It is embarrassing for Germany when Great Britain thinks about how it can help the Chancellor out of trouble,” said CDU foreign expert Norbert Röttgen to the Editorial Network Germany (RND). “The British have come to the conclusion that the coalition in Berlin will not come to a decision on its own. Unfortunately, that says everything about the international reputation of the federal government.”
Critical voices also came from the traffic light coalition. The chairwoman of the Defense Committee, Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann (FDP), emphasized that Ukraine needs “Taurus” “immediately.” She told the “Handelsblatt” that she couldn’t understand what an exchange of rings would bring. “Then ‘Taurus’ is no longer available for the Bundeswehr and Ukraine still doesn’t have one. ‘Storm Shadow’ is not an equivalent replacement.” In this respect, the proposal is “unsuitable,” emphasized Strack-Zimmermann.
The chairman of the European Committee in the Bundestag, Anton Hofreiter (Greens), sees the ring exchange as only the second best option. “Before Ukraine is not provided with any cruise missiles at all, it is still better if at least ‘Storm Shadow’ is delivered in the form of a ring exchange,” Hofreiter told the “Rheinische Post”. The considerations “exemplarily show Scholz’s weakness” in supporting Ukraine, Hofreiter told the dpa news agency. The message is: “Great Britain can deliver, but Germany cannot.”
A ring exchange wouldn’t be perfect, but it would be better than the status quo, said SPD foreign policy expert Michael Roth. However, the debate should not distract from the fact that a few dozen Taurus cruise missiles are not decisive for the war: “In view of the lack of help from the USA, Europe should put all its weight on boosting domestic arms production and at the same time buy supplies for Ukraine on the world market.” said Roth.
Ukraine’s request in spring 2023
Ukraine had already officially asked the federal government for “Taurus” cruise missiles in May last year. The weapons can hit targets up to 500 kilometers away with great precision.