Strack-Zimmermann puts pressure - German battle tanks to the Ukraine
Created: 09/12/2022, 10:45 am
By: Vincent Bussow
The FDP politician Agnes-Marie Strack-Zimmermann demands direct deliveries of German tanks to the Ukraine.
(Archive image) © Fabian Sommer/dpa
In the discussion about arms deliveries to Ukraine, many demands are made.
The FDP politician Strack-Zimmermann is the clearest.
Berlin – After Ukraine's recent successes in the fight against Russia, calls are again being made in Germany to supply more weapons to the attacked country.
The FDP politician Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann, who demanded immediate action, was particularly clear.
Such tones are also coming from the other governing parties.
The Chancellor, however, hesitates.
In the past few days, Ukraine's long-awaited major offensive has led to major successes for the country.
The Ukrainian and Russian armed forces unanimously report the withdrawal of the Russian attackers, including from the Kharkiv region.
This development did not go unnoticed abroad either and suddenly fueled the debate about arms deliveries in Germany.
Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann demands tank deliveries to the Ukraine
The chairwoman of the Defense Committee in the Bundestag, Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann, called for the delivery of German battle tanks to the Ukraine.
She referred directly to the successes of the counter-offensive and named the Marder infantry fighting vehicle and the Leonard II main battle tank.
"This is incredibly important and should happen immediately," said the FDP politician on Monday in the
ARD morning magazine
.
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The other colors of the traffic light coalition signaled openness to this proposal.
In the Monday edition of the Augsburger Allgemeine
, the chairman of the Greens, Omid Nouripur, called for
arms deliveries to come "if possible directly from the stocks of the Bundeswehr".
SPD leader Lars Klingbeil spoke on
ARD
for a quick decision in the Western alliance regarding further arms deliveries to Ukraine.
Direct weapons to Ukraine: Strack-Zimmermann calls for Scholz to change course
Meanwhile, the Chancellor and his defense minister have been reluctant to comment on the subject.
Olaf Scholz pointed out that the major NATO partners do not supply tanks directly and that Germany does not want to go it alone.
The SPD Defense Minister Christine Lambrecht also said in the online magazine
Politico
that she takes the NATO agreement on the eastern flank very seriously.
She also pointed to the previous underfunding of the Bundeswehr, which limited operational readiness.
Instead, Strack-Zimmermann called for no hesitation on the issue of arms deliveries to the Ukraine.
"I wish that the chancellor would change his line, I wish that the defense minister would change her line," she said.
The US ambassador to Germany, Amy Gutmann, also said that her expectations of the federal government were "even higher".
"We have to do everything we are able to do," she said on
ZDF
on Sunday evening .
(vbu with dpa and AFP)
