Why Germany has abandoned its post-WWII stance to give Ukraine heavy weapons — and what those weapons are
CBSSep 09, 2022
Germany Greenlights Anti-Aircraft Systems for Ukraine
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Image copyright: AP [via Business Insider]
The Facts
After weeks of mounting pressure, German Federal Minister of Defense Christine Lambrecht announced on Tues. that Germany has approved the delivery of heavy weapons to Ukraine. The announcement was made at the Ukraine Security Conference at the US Ramstein Air Base in Germany.
Although Germany already supplies military equipment to Ukraine, such as anti-tank weapons, anti-tank mines, and artillery ammunition, the governing coalition initially refused to supply heavy weapons, with Chan. Olaf Scholz warning of "an escalation that could lead to World War III."
The Spin
Pro-establishment narrative
There's no return to the status quo. The German government must wake up to the fact that Putin only knows the language of power; Moscow must be countered before Russian imperialism and barbarism spreads further across Europe. Everything must be done to back Kyiv militarily against Russia's war of extermination.
Establishment-critical narrative
A contest for who supplies the most and heaviest weapons to Ukraine has broken out as Western powers continue to ignore the possibility of peace talks. The fact that Germany is now bowing down to the US and supplying tanks to Ukraine will only prolong the fighting. Obviously, a peace agreement is not the West's goal.
