Germany's Scholz under fire for blocking extra €3 billion aid package for Ukraine

Hind Al Soulia - Riyadh - BERLIN — German Chancellor Olaf Scholz is under fire from lawmakers from across the political spectrum — including his own foreign minister — for refusing to approve a further €3 billion in military aid for Ukraine unless it is funded with additional borrowing.

Speaking on national television earlier this week, Germany's beleaguered leader said he would only agree to the military aid package if new debt was issued to finance it, rather than cuts to social spending.

The additional cash, which would supplement €4 billion of aid for Kyiv already committed for 2025 in a provisional budget, would mainly fund weapons for Ukraine's air defense.

Opposition politicians and even Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock have criticized Scholz's stance — either directly or indirectly — and accused him of electioneering.

"Germany as a whole isn't currently seen as a driving force for peace policy in Europe, and honestly that pains me," Baerbock, a leading Greens lawmaker, told Politico in an interview on Friday.

“Even now, during the election campaign, some prioritize a national perspective — or how to quickly gain a few votes in the parliamentary election — rather than taking real responsibility for securing Europe’s peace and freedom," added Baerbock, without mentioning Scholz by name.

Germany is set for snap elections on 23 February after the brittle three-way coalition dramatically collapsed in November.

Scholz's Social Democratic Party (SPD) is third in the latest opinion polls, on 16%, behind the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) on 20%, and the centre-right alliance between the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and Christian Socialist Union (CSU) on 31%.

Many SPD members and supporters are weary of Russia's war in Ukraine, and reluctant for Germany to keep spending billions on arms deliveries given the country's economic stagnation and double-digit budget shortfall, according to local media reports. Germany is the second biggest provider of financial and military aid to Ukraine after the US.

Earlier this week, Karstein Klein of the pro-business Free Democratic Party (FDP) and Johann Wadephul of the CDU separately told German press agency dpa that they felt Scholz was trying to win over voters by linking the aid package to borrowing.

"Support for Ukraine does not require watering down the debt brake," Klein told dpa. "Scholz is carrying out election campaign manoeuvres on the backs of the Ukrainians."

The CDU, CSU and FDP generally support giving more aid to Kyiv but are against taking on additional debt to finance it. Therefore it is currently unclear whether the €3 billion package will be passed before the country's parliamentary elections next month.

German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius made a surprise visit to Kyiv on Tuesday, which he said was meant to highlight Berlin’s support for Ukraine ahead of the inauguration of US President-elect Donald Trump, who looks set to transform Washington’s policy on the war.

Speaking on Friday, Scholz said he had spoken to Trump twice since the US election in November, and that he did not think his incoming administration would stop providing military aid to Ukraine.

"We can therefore hope that good cooperation between Europe and the US will continue to be successful in the future, including on the issue of support for Ukraine," Scholz said. — Euronews