Berlin rules out sending German, EU troops to Ukraine
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Germany and fellow EU countries underline that they will not be sending their troops into Ukraine amid the ongoing war.
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Germany and other EU soldiers will not be heading to Ukraine anytime soon
Germany and the other member states of the European Union will not be sending their troops to Ukraine, Siemtje Moeller, the parliamentary state secretary of the Germany Defense Ministry, said on Tuesday.
Moeller, however, said the allied western countries would continue sending military assistance to Ukraine in light of the ongoing war.
"From our point of view, it is excluded," Moeller told reporters in Prague upon arrival for an informal EU defense ministers summit when asked about the prospect of Germany and other EU countries sending their military to Ukraine.
The official revealed that the informal meeting will see the defense ministers discussing - among other things - sending a high-level training mission for the Ukrainian armed forces, the official added.
Despite pledging more assistance, senior EU officials admit that there will most likely be a "crunch point" in the fall or early winter when EU countries begin to feel acute domestic economic pain as a result of the crisis.
Macron said that France will continue to support Ukraine with military, financial, and humanitarian aid until "victory" has been achieved on terms acceptable to Kiev. But behind these public statements of support for Ukraine lies a tug-of-war between Germany, France, and — before Prime Minister Mario Draghi’s downfall — Italy on the one hand, and Poland, the Baltics, and Nordics on the other.
The countries of the EU, mainly France and Germany, do not know what a "victory" might entail, and they continue to blindly aid Ukraine without knowing whether the war can be "won" without any escalations that directly involve NATO or the EU, or even Russia's use of unconventional weapons.
Germany is Ukraine's biggest European backer, with Berlin continuing to transfer weaponry to Ukraine that even its own forces do not have.
"We delivered whatever we had: anti-tank and anti-aircraft systems, mines, guns, tons of ammunition, and non-lethal aid. Since then, we've progressed to more intricate and valuable systems," German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said earlier in the month.
Due to the transfer of arms to Ukraine, Russia already addressed a note to all countries. According to Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, any convoy containing arms for Ukraine will become a valid target for Russia.
Last month, German Defense Minister Christine Lambrecht, reported by Germany's DPA news agency, said the German military is running out of weapons that can be sent to Ukraine, but Ukraine may still rely on Germany's assistance in the future.
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