Ukraine’s new defense minister has blamed Germany for blocking the supply of weaponry to Kyiv through NATO, despite US warnings of a possible imminent invasion by Russian forces. He said this in a comment to the Financial Times.
According to Oleksii Reznikov, Berlin had in the past month vetoed Ukraine’s purchase of anti-drone rifles and anti-sniper systems via the Nato Support and Procurement Agency. However, Germany had since relented on the first item, after deeming it non-lethal.
“They are still building the Nord Stream 2 pipeline and at the same time blocking our defensive weapons. It is very unfair,” Reznikov said, referring to the Russian gas pipeline that runs through the Baltic Sea to Germany and bypasses existing supply routes through Ukraine.
It is noted that the decision to block the supply of weapons to Ukraine was made by the government of ex-Chancellor Angela Merkel, and the position of the new leadership of Germany headed by Chancellor Olaf Scholz is still unknown. The German Ministry of Economy, which is responsible for approval or vetoing of arms exports, and the German Chancellery refused to comment.
Kyiv has struggled to plug gaps in its military capabilities, but allies are wary that supplying arms may be deemed a provocation, or even a pretext for escalation, by Moscow. Ukraine is urgently seeking to acquire anti-missile and anti-aircraft systems, electronic warfare kit and cyber defence equipment.