Berlin, after Warsaw’s request, is faced with a difficult choice, which the FRG has avoided since the beginning of the Russian military aggression against Ukraine.
The fall of the rocket on the territory of Poland forced NATO to take care of the best protection of the countries of the Alliance. In particular, Germany proposed to the neighboring country to strengthen its air defense systems with the Patriot air defense system. Here, Warsaw asked Berlin to transfer these complexes to Ukraine.
In Germany, they objected and said that the Patriot was intended only for NATO member countries. In this regard, the Secretary of the General Alliance, Jens Stoltenberg, said that the decision to supply Patriot systems for Kyiv should be made by individual countries, not by NATO, which transfers responsibility only to Berlin.
Now Germany faces a choice, as Stoltenberg called it a “national decision” of the FRG. Will it be positive for Kyiv understood Korrepsondet.net.
Unexpected offer from Warsaw
Poland’s idea to deploy the Patriot in the western regions of Ukraine came as a surprise to Germany. Within days, what Berlin intended as a gesture of solidarity with a neighboring country sparked domestic controversy. The German government kept a low profile. In particular, German Ambassador to Poland Thomas Bagger said that Berlin’s proposal was “a manifestation of how important Poland is for Germany” and that Warsaw’s reaction was “hard to understand.”
The Greens, on the other hand, advocated the expansion of military aid to Ukraine and raised a new wave of criticism against Chancellor Olaf Scholz, saying “Germany does not want to give Ukraine modern weapons at a difficult moment .” The representative of the Bundestag from the Union-90 / Greens and head of the European Affairs Committee, Anton Hofreiter, supported the idea: “I think it is absolutely right that Poland asks to give the Patriot air defense system to Ukraine.”
Berlin is resting
Judging by the statements, neither NATO nor Poland sees any problems with the transfer of these complexes to Ukraine. Now Berlin has a problem. At the same time, in recent days, there have been hints from Germany that Ukraine will not receive an air defense system.
In particular, the German government is unlikely to send its troops to Ukraine to serve the Patriot, fearing that Germany will be drawn into the war. Chancellor Olaf Scholz recently pointed out that part of German society is against arms supplies to Ukraine. He promotes arms supplies to the Armed Forces of Ukraine that are in contact with NATO allies. Many countries of the Alliance have Patriots, but so far none of them have transferred them to Kyiv.
According to military expert Sergei Kuzan, all these statements by the Germans about the need for consultations with allies and members of the Alliance are “just new nonsense to slow down the process of transferring air defense to Ukraine .”
“The practical transfer of them to Ukraine is completely possible. Obviously, Germany has again decided to delay the transfer of air defense. They want to somehow hide behind the decision of NATO, or, perhaps, slow down the process. To convene a separate meeting. The NATO body for consultations and a decision – all this is extra time and bureaucratic red tape,” the expert wrote.
Moreover, the representative of the German Ministry of Defense, Arno Kollats, indicates that the FRG does not support Poland’s proposal to transfer Patriot systems to Ukraine. According to him, “there is a great interest” for Patriot to remain in the NATO system. He noted that the head of the department, Christine Lambrecht, made it clear that the systems are an “integrated and integral” part of the Alliance’s defense.
“This is Germany’s contribution to the Alliance’s air defense system. Germany must decide how to fulfill its obligations to introduce rapid reaction forces in the near future. So, Germany also needs these systems to be able to fulfill its obligations to partners,” Kollatz said. .
He said Germany wants to help Poland protect its airspace from external threats, both with air defense systems and increased air patrols, and both proposals remain in effect.
What makes the Patriot unique?
The Armed Forces of Ukraine admitted that they are in dire need of these air defense systems, as the Patriot is capable of shooting down targets at long distances. Currently, there are several modifications of the long-range complex, the last of which is capable of shooting ballistic targets.
In general, the percentage of destruction varies depending on the technical characteristics of the complex, for example: Patriot is capable of shooting targets at a distance of up to 150 km; Buk M1 – 40 km; IRIS-T – 40 km; NASAMS – 40 km; C300 – 75 km.
“It is clear that if it is 150 km, then by placing those complexes at a certain distance from each other, it is already possible to block a relatively large section of airspace with four installations, ” said Yury Ignat, spokesman for the command of the Air Force of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
According to him, the Patriot is a very modern and efficient complex, whose radars can detect targets from the smallest to the largest very effectively.
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Source: korrespondent
I am David Wyatt, a professional writer and journalist for Buna Times. I specialize in the world section of news coverage, where I bring to light stories and issues that affect us globally. As a graduate of Journalism, I have always had the passion to spread knowledge through writing.