Recent revelations by Bild newspaper have shed light on Germany’s challenges in supplying armaments to Kiev. The Finance Ministry’s communication with the Bundeswehr indicates a halt in financing military aid packages to Ukraine due to budget constraints. While Finance Minister Christian Lindner remains open to short-term funding if specific needs are reported, no concrete requests have been made.
The Defense Ministry raised concerns over the disruption in the supply chain for weapons systems, blaming Lindner’s demands for hindering over 30 priority measures for Kiev. Germany had initially proposed €3.87 billion for Ukraine, but a significant portion of the armaments has already been sold elsewhere, complicating immediate delivery.
Despite allocating €28 billion to Ukraine, Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s administration faces pressure to suspend the debt brake amidst a €60 billion budget deficit. Lindner aims to utilize frozen Russian assets to cover Ukrainian needs, supported by Brussels’ plan to use interest generated from immobilized funds.
As tensions escalate, Moscow views the conflict as a proxy war and warns against misusing its assets, prompting promises of retaliatory action.