Germany to provide over 1B euro's worth of military aid to Ukraine
3 Min Read
German funds must be used by Ukraine to finance purchases of military equipment, said a government spokeswoman to AFP.
-
Germany to provide over 1 billion Euros' military aid to Ukraine.
The German government announced on Friday that it intends to transfer more than a billion euros in military aid to Ukraine, despite Kiev's protests that Berlin is not providing heavy weapons.
The funds will feature in a supplementary budget for this year.
Berlin has decided to increase its international aid in the military sector "to two billion euros" with "the largest part being planned in the form of military aid in favor of Ukraine", a government spokeswoman told AFP.
The two billion euros "will go mainly to Ukraine", Finance Minister Christian Lindner confirmed on Twitter.
Ukraine must use the funds primarily to purchase military weapons.
After being criticized by Ukraine, Germany followed through with the aid package, while some EU partners were also criticized for the lack of support in terms of armaments to Kiev.
Read more: German arms maker offers self-propelled artillery to Ukraine
Diplomatic feathers were ruffled earlier in the week after Kiev rejected a proposed visit by Germany's president Frank-Walter Steinmeier, a former foreign minister who recently acknowledged "errors" in a too conciliatory stance toward Moscow in the past.
The Ukrainian presidency instead said it wanted to welcome Chancellor Olaf Scholz to Kiev, but the chancellor made it clear he had no plans to visit anytime soon
The spat came as Scholz faced pressure to step up support for Ukraine.
Despite his abrupt U-turn on Germany's defense policy in response to Russia's attack, he has come under fire at home for his reluctance to deliver heavy weapons to Ukraine.
Following visits to Kiev by numerous other foreign leaders, notably British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and EU Commissioner Ursula von der Leyen, critics questioned Scholz's absence.
Ukraine's ambassador to Germany, Andriy Melnyk, said a Scholz trip to Kiev would send a "strong signal", while the opposition CDU has urged him to "get an idea of the situation on the ground".
In an interview with the business newspaper Handelsblatt on Monday, Scholz's ruling coalition member, Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann of the liberal FDP, advised that Scholz "start using his abilities of direction and leadership."
Kiev: German President 'not welcome'
German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier said, on Tuesday, that “this war will for a long time require our support, our ability to defend, our readiness to bear the burden."
Steinmeier said that he was ready to visit Kiev alongside his colleagues from Poland and the Baltic states, but Ukraine had told him his trip was "not wanted".
"I was prepared to do this, but apparently, and I must take note of this, this was not wanted in Kiev," he said.
