War in Ukraine: Ex-Merkel adviser Vad warns against delivery of heavy weapons

tanks and artillery
Potential “path to World War III”: Ex-Merkel adviser Vad against delivery of heavy weapons to Ukraine

The former military-political advisor to former Chancellor Angela Merkel, former Brigadier General Erich Vad, has spoken out against the delivery of heavy weapons to Ukraine. Such deliveries are potentially a “path to World War III,” Vad told the German Press Agency.

Apart from that, you can only operate and use complex weapon systems such as the Leopard battle tank or the Marder infantry fighting vehicle after years of training, said Vad. They are of no use to the Ukrainians militarily at the moment and in the foreseeable future.

Brigadier General Erich Vad: “We’re doing a lot of war rhetoric at the moment”

“We’re doing a lot of war rhetoric at the moment – out of good moral intent,” Vad said. “But, as is well known, the road to hell is always paved with good intentions. We have to think through the end of the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine. If we don’t want World War III, sooner or later we have to get out of this logic of military escalation and start negotiations record, tape.”

Vad warned against denying Russian President Vladimir Putin’s humanity and branding him a pathological despot with whom one can no longer talk. As terrible as the Ukraine war is in violation of international law, it is part of a chain of comparable wars of recent date. “Iraq, Syria, Libya, Afghanistan – none of this is new,” said Vad. Unfortunately, the far too many dead civilians and the massacres that have now taken place in the Ukraine war are not exceptional.

Hundreds of thousands of civilians died in the Iraq war

“In war, innocent people are killed. That’s war. Unfortunately, that’s inherent in the system.” Vad recalled the Iraq war of 2003. Hundreds of thousands of civilians were killed in that war and during the country’s subsequent occupation. “Compared to that, Putin is not out of the ordinary. Here you have to leave the church in the village – as shocking as the pictures are.”

For example, when it is said that the Russians set fire to a maternity hospital, the implication is that it was done on purpose. “But it certainly wasn’t Putin’s intention – why should he do that? He’s being pilloried for it worldwide. As terrible as that is, we had that and the acceptance of thousands of dead civilians in Iraq, in Libya, in Afghanistan as well. ” So far, the so-called collateral damage in Ukraine has been far less than in Iraq or Afghanistan.

It is just as double-edged to accuse Putin of counting Ukraine and Crimea as part of Russia’s geopolitical sphere of influence. It is then said that this is an obsolete 19th century view. “But for the Americans, the Monroe Doctrine still applies today, stating that no intervention by foreign powers will be tolerated on the American continent. And the Caribbean is certainly also a sphere of influence, and not just since the Cuban Missile Crisis.” Even if one wants to advance the democratization of the world with good intentions, it is always about expanding spheres of influence in fact and in terms of power politics.

Chances for negotiations are not bad

The security expert and military analyst assumes that Putin gave up the regime change he originally wanted in Ukraine after the extensive withdrawal from the Kyiv area.

“That’s why the chances for negotiations are actually not bad,” said Vad. “Both sides could get out of there face-saving. The Ukrainians have proven that they have effectively defended their capital, Kyiv, and, moreover, put up a successful defensive struggle against a superior opponent. The Russians, in turn, have made some land gains in the east and on the Black Sea coast. These are not The worst conditions for armistice and peace negotiations and better for both sides than to be dragged further into the quagmire of a long war with an uncertain outcome.”

tis
DPA