Speaking on the sidelines of a conference on Syria in Saudi Arabia, Baerbock said that Germany spent almost seven billion euros last year to procure weapons for Ukraine, reports Index.
If that amount were reduced to half or a little more than half, Ukraine would have a harder time defending itself, she said.
Der Spiegel magazine reported on Thursday that the German government is arguing over the continuation of arms shipments to Ukraine. According to a media report, Baerbock and Defense Minister Boris Pistorius plan to mobilize almost three billion euros of additional money for urgently needed weapons for Ukraine before the German parliamentary elections on February 23.
“Scholz blocks plans”
However, Chancellor Olaf Scholz is said to be blocking those plans and claims that he does not want to put the new government on the precipice. After the collapse of Germany’s three-member coalition government in November, the country has no budget for 2025. The government is instead working on an interim budget that includes four billion euros in aid for Ukraine.
When asked by the public broadcaster ARD about the dispute, Scholz said that the draft budget lacked 12.5 billion euros. An additional three billion euros would increase that deficit to 15.5 billion euros, which cannot be financed without new borrowing.
The question of how to fill that hole in the budget caused the collapse of the German coalition. Scholz wanted to suspend the constitutional debt limit, but his coalition partners, the Free Democrats (FDP), were fiercely against it.
A government spokeswoman said on Friday that military aid to Ukraine is a constant topic in the government and that the government is having internal discussions about it.
(Vijesti.ba)
