Chancellor Olaf Scholz travels to Ukraine - Kiev demands 12,000 anti-tank missiles

Created: 02/14/2022, 07:05

By: Sarah Neumeyer

Chancellor Olaf Scholz travels to Kiev on Monday.

Meanwhile, the Ukrainian ambassador is again demanding weapons from Germany.

• Ukraine crisis: Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz* (SPD*) travels to Kiev on Monday (02/14/2022).

• On Tuesday (February 15, 2022) Scholz will be received by Vladimir Putin* in the Kremlin.

• Before the chancellor's trip, warnings of a Russian attack on Ukraine increased.

Berlin - After a dramatic escalation of the Ukraine crisis in the past few days, Chancellor Olaf Scholz will travel to Kiev on Monday (February 14, 2022) to meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

In purely formal terms, it is his inaugural visit as chancellor, a good two months after he was sworn in.

However, the four hours in the Ukrainian capital will be dominated by the increasing tensions with Russia* and the recent war warnings from the USA*.

Before his meeting with Zelenskyy, he will lay a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and commemorate the victims of the 2014 revolution at the monument to the "Heavenly Hundreds".

Scholz will meet Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow on Tuesday (February 15, 2022).

Before the visit, the Ukrainian ambassador in Berlin renewed the demand for heavy weapons from Germany.

On Sunday (February 13, 2022), Andriy Melnyk demanded the immediate delivery of 12,000 anti-tank missiles in order to be able to fend off a possible Russian ground offensive against Ukraine.

"The situation is dramatic," he said on Bild-TV.

"What we have to be prepared for today is the worst possible scenario."

Civilians use wooden dummies to practice handling weapons as part of the Don't Panic! campaign.

Prepare!

(Don't Panic! Prepare!).

© Sergei Chuzavkov/dfpa

Ukraine crisis: Government refuses delivery of deadly weapons

The federal government refuses to supply deadly weapons to Ukraine.

However, it is considering making armaments available below this threshold.

A February 3 wish list from the Ukrainian embassy includes a number of armaments that are clearly not lethal weapons.

These include electronic tracking systems, mine clearance equipment, protective suits, digital radios, radar stations and night vision devices.

Anti-tank missiles are not on this wish list.

"Ukraine can be sure that we will show the necessary solidarity, as in the past," said Scholz (SPD) on Sunday (February 13, 2022).

The Chancellor is expected to pledge further economic support to Ukraine during his visit to Kiev.

Since the start of the Ukraine conflict in 2014, almost two billion euros have already flowed into the country from Germany.

Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz travels to Kiev on Monday (February 14, 2022).

© Kay Nietfeld/dpa

Ukraine crisis: Baerbock speaks of an "absolutely precarious situation"

In the past few days, the crisis surrounding the Russian troop deployment on the border with Ukraine has drastically worsened.

On Friday, US President Joe Biden* security adviser Jake Sullivan openly warned of a Russian invasion of Ukraine before the end of this week.

Russia, on the other hand, speaks of “provoactive speculation” and “hysteria”.

Nevertheless, numerous Western countries are asking their citizens to leave Ukraine - including Germany.

At the same time, intensive diplomatic efforts to de-escalate the situation are not progressing.

In Scholz' environment, the situation is rated as "extremely dangerous".

The "very worrying overall picture" will shape the talks with Zelenskyj and Putin, it is said.

Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock* (Greens) spoke on Sunday evening on ARD of an “absolutely precarious situation”.

But there are no signs "that a military conflict has already been decided".

Ukraine conflict: Nord Stream 2 is also an issue for Scholz in Kiev

In addition to the arms deliveries demanded by Ukraine, Scholz will accompany another difficult issue to Kiev and Moscow - the pipeline between Russia and Germany, the name of which the chancellor no longer wants to pronounce: Nord Stream 2. The government in Kiev has been strictly against the project for years , because she fears billions in revenue from Russian gas transfers through Ukraine.

Scholz only covertly put the pipeline on the table as a possible sanction in the event of a Russian invasion of Ukraine.

He hasn't spoken his name publicly since mid-December.

Even on his inaugural visit to the USA, he stayed with him, although US President Joe Biden* made it very clear in his presence at a joint press conference: In the event of a Russian invasion of Ukraine, “there will be no more Nord Stream 2.

We're going to put an end to this," Biden said.

Ukraine conflict: Olaf Scholz travels to Russia on Tuesday

After his visit to Kiev, Scholz will return to Berlin for a few hours on Monday evening (02/14/2022).

Early on Tuesday morning (February 15, 2022) he will go to Moscow, where Putin will receive him in the Kremlin.

Scholz wants to stick to his dual strategy there: on the one hand, the threat of severe consequences in the event of a Russian invasion of Ukraine.

On the other hand, willingness to talk in order to de-escalate.

Together with France, Germany has been mediating between Kiev and Moscow since the start of the Ukraine conflict in 2014.

Scholz may also be reluctant to make tough announcements to Moscow for this reason.

Unusually, Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier* took over on Sunday (February 13, 2022).

"Untie the noose around Ukraine's neck," he called out to Putin after his re-election.

Normally, the distribution of roles between the Federal President and the Federal Chancellor is reversed.

The head of state is holding back, and the chancellor speaks plain language on current issues.

(sne/dpa)

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