German Chancellor Merz Signals Increased Military Support for Ukraine, Amidst Taurus Missile Debate
Following a press โขconference with โSwedish โprimeโ Minister Ulf Kristersson in Berlin, German Chancellor โFriedrich Merz indicated โฃintensified efforts to provide Ukraine with โข”long-range fire” capabilities.he stated the Ukrainian army isโค currently being equipped with such weapons systems, but declined to provide specific โขdetails โregarding arms deliveries to Kyiv, citing a deliberate strategyโค to maintain “a โคcertain โฃlack ofโ clarity vis-ร -vis the Russian side” regardingโ the extent of german military support.
Merz affirmed Germany is โ”doing everything weโค can to equip the Ukrainian army with weapons systems that haveโ the appropriate range,” suggesting a potential โฃincrease โin support,โฃ including bolsteringโ weapons โคsystem production within Ukraine, in the coming weeks and months.
This statement has reignitedโข discussion surrounding theโค potential delivery of Taurus cruise missiles โฃto Ukraine. The Taurus, withโค a range of up to 500โ kilometers, has โbeen a point of contention, as previous German leadership, including former Chancellorโฃ Olaf Scholz, resisted supplying them due to concerns about potentially โขescalating the conflict and Germany being implicated in strikes deep within Russian โterritory – specifically, theโ potential to target Moscow, which lies approximately 500 kilometers from Ukraine’s northern border.
While Merz’s comments suggest a possible shift in approach,he has not explicitly โขconfirmed the delivery of Taurus missiles. During his election campaign, Merz expressed openness to supplying the missiles, but later โขannounced a policy of withholdingโ information about weapons provided to Ukraine following a โฃvisit to Kyiv.Currently, thereโ isโฃ no publicly โavailable information confirming the presence โor use of the Taurus missile within Ukraine.
Defense Minister Boris Pistoriusโ recently declined to comment on the possibility of supplying โคTaurus missiles when questionedโค after a meeting of the Group ofโ Five defense ministers.
Alongside the discussion of the taurus, merz’s statements highlighted Germany’s โขfinancialโ support for the Ukrainianโข defense industry, specifically focusing on the production of long-range weapons systems. A May 28th press release from the โคGermanโ Defence Ministry announced Germanyโ will โคfinance the production of theseโข systems inโข Ukraine, with the expectation that aโ “considerable number” will be available โขto theโค Ukrainian armed forces as early as 2025, with some deployable within weeks.โ
the specific weapon systems being financed remainโข undisclosed.However, Ukraine’s Fire Point defense company recently unveiled its domestically produced โFlamingo cruise missile, โฃboasting a range of up to 3,000 kilometers. It remains unclear whether German funding โขis contributing to the advancement or production of the flamingo missile program.