Germany slams Britain for supporting Ukraine

A German official has slammed Britain for its support for Ukraine after criticizing Berlin’s aid to Kiev and President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

Niels Annen, a German politician from the leading Social Democratic Party, spoke on Friday ahead of the first anniversary of Vladimir Putin’s invasion.

Faced with criticism that Berlin was slow to agree to sending heavy arms to Ukraine, Mr Annen asked the BBC: “May I politely ask how many refugees from Ukraine has the UK taken in?”

Since Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s speech three days after Moscow sent troops to Ukraine, Germany has become one of Ukraine’s leading arms suppliers. Lawmakers, including the largest opposition bloc, strongly backed the €100 billion defense procurement fund announced by the Chancellor in June.

In addition to its military support, Germany has taken in over a million Ukrainian refugees, according to UN figures – third behind Poland (1.5 million) and Russia (2.8 million, although many are believed to have been forcibly resettled in Russia).

UN figures show that Germany has taken in over a million Ukrainian refugees – third behind Poland (1.5 million) and Russia (2.8 million, although many are thought to have been forcibly resettled in Russia). Pictured: Refugees are seen at a train station in Berlin on March 8, 2022

Germany’s aid (it’s Ukraine’s largest supplier in continental Europe) has been overshadowed by criticism over its perceived reluctance to step up support, particularly in providing main battle tanks, over the past month. Pictured: A German Leopard 2 tank in action on February 1st

However, aid from Germany (it is Ukraine’s largest supplier in continental Europe) has been repeatedly overshadowed by criticism that the country appears reluctant to increase assistance, particularly in the last month when it provided main battle tanks.

Speaking on BBC Radio Four’s Today programme, Mr Annen praised Scholz, who announced seismic shifts in Germany’s military, foreign and economic policies days after Russia invaded Ukraine.

Scholz said Germany will pour 100 billion euros into arming its army, sending weapons to Kiev and weaning itself off Russian energy.

‘[Scholz] turned German foreign and security policy upside down,” said Mr. Annen.

“Today, Germany is the third largest arms supplier to Ukraine – we supply sophisticated heavy weapons.

“We are the leading doner kebab shop when it comes to reconstruction. We prepare support accounts in humanitarian development assistance.’

When asked by Today Program host Nick Robinson if it was frustrating that other countries were critical of Germany, he asked how many refugees the UK had taken in from Ukraine.

According to the UN, Britain had taken in around 154,000 – fewer than Spain, Italy, the US, the Czech Republic, Germany and Poland.

“We are used to this pressure (from refugees),” he said.

“You can’t choose the times you live in. I find it interesting to experience the last few years, we have seen many talking heads, think tanks, politicians calling for more leadership in Berlin. Well, now you get your lead.

“Probably what you like isn’t always what you expect,” he added.

When a German official received criticism of Berlin’s aid to Kiev and President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, he questioned how many Ukrainian refugees the UK has taken in. Pictured: Refugees are seen at the Polish border March 27, 2022 as millions flee Ukraine

Speaking to the BBC, Niels Annen (left speaking with Kiev Mayor Vitali Klitschko, left, and others) praised Chancellor Olaf Scholz, who days after Russia invaded Ukraine saw seismic changes in Germany’s military, foreign and announced economic policy

For many, however, the criticism that Germany has been slow is justified.

“From now on, we will invest more than two percent of gross domestic product in our defense every year,” Scholz promised last February, a NATO target that Germany has been missing for years, much to the displeasure of allies like the UNS.

Mid-2022 NATO figures estimated the country would miss the benchmark again last year as 1.44% of GDP would go to defence.

Opposition leader Friedrich Merz complained to Scholz in a Bundestag debate this month that “large parts of the so-called ‘Wende’, which you described here on February 27 last year, have so far largely happened on paper in Germany”.

Merz said it was unacceptable that “virtually no orders” had yet been placed, especially for ammunition.

It was mid-December when lawmakers gave the green light to specific major procurement projects, including the purchase of 35 Lockheed Martin F-35 fighter jets, new assault rifles and radio systems.

German armaments companies have so far hardly complained about orders.

While it is widely recognized that Russia’s aggression marked a turning point, “it took a very long time to get the changes in the German ministerial system down to the bureaucracy,” said Thomas Wiegold, a defense policy expert who published the magazine Augenstraightaus! military blog.

“It has to be said that it hasn’t really been implemented yet.”

Around 30 billion euros of the special fund have so far been tied to specific projects, said Defense Ministry spokesman Arne Collatz on Wednesday.

There have been calls from some inside and outside the military for a large increase in the special military procurement fund. But Wiegold noted that the regular deployment of the military, including basic costs such as fuel, which are becoming ever more expensive, is not covered by the fund and billions have to be spent on ammunition.

“The main issue is not raising the special fund; The main question is what the defense budget, the regular budget, will look like in the coming years,” he said.

In a speech on Saturday ahead of the Munich Security Conference, an annual gathering of representatives of international security policy, Scholz underscored his pledge to “permanently” increase Germany’s defense spending to 2% of GDP.

Defense Minister Boris Pistorius, who brought fresh impetus to the Defense Ministry after the resignation of his much-criticized predecessor last month, is reportedly pushing for a €10 billion increase in the regular defense budget from the current around €50 billion a year.

After the Russian invasion of Ukraine, people wait to board an evacuation train from Kiev to Lviv at Kiev’s main train station March 1 in Kiev, Ukraine

“We will achieve the 2 percent target, but we will also make every effort to go beyond that,” said the minister. “Of course, that still has to be agreed in the (government) coalition, but it must be clear to everyone that we cannot cope with the tasks ahead of us with just under 2 percent alone.”

It’s not an easy question as Germany grapples with the fallout from high inflation and the switch to renewable energy sources while trying to keep government debt in check. “We would all rather spend more money on other things, but the reality is what it is,” Pistorius said.

Germany’s image as a country that needs to be urged at every turn to increase its military aid might be easier to fix.

“When you see the long list of what Germany has delivered, it’s pretty impressive,” Wiegold said. “At the same time, the German government is pretty, pretty bad at communicating. … If Germany would communicate better what it is doing, that would help a lot.”

Source: | This article originally belongs to Dailymail.co.uk