Germans making excuses not to send weapons to Ukraine says dep FM

Germany is looking for every possible excuse not to supply Ukraine with weapons, a Polish deputy foreign minister has claimed.

On Wednesday the Wall Street Journal (WSJ), citing high-ranking German officials, reported that Berlin will prohibit the export of German-made Leopard tanks to Ukraine unless the US sends its own tanks.

Germany, which controls the Leopard’s export license, has so far flummoxed plans by other countries that use the tank, such as Poland, to send their own Leopards to Ukraine.

Commenting on the WSJ report, Piotr Wawrzyk, a deputy foreign minister, told PAP on Thursday that: "Germany has not changed its policy of looking for any excuse not to supply weapons needed in Ukraine.

"It is a bit strange to say that one's actions are dependent on the actions of another country."

Wawrzyk added that the German government is "trying to the maximum extent not to supply weapons to Ukraine" and when it does it is only as because of pressure from international public opinion and allies.

"Only when further resistance makes no sense, because it could spoil relations with some countries, then Germany, by way of special kindness, sends some kind of weaponry to Ukraine," he said.

Wawrzyk also referred to comments made by Mateusz Morawiecki, the Polish prime minister, who said on Wednesday that Germany's consent to the transfer of tanks is "a secondary issue... we will either get it quickly or we will do what should be done."

Commenting on Morawiecki's statement, Wawrzyk said that "Any price is worth paying in this case."

"This is a security issue not only for Poland, but also for Germany... I am convinced that if Putin were to unfortunately beat Ukraine, then he would have gone further... and if one of the Nato countries is attacked, all countries, including Germany, will have to fulfil their allied obligations," he said.