CDU opposition leader Friedrich Merz has called on Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) to keep promises of military support in the Ukraine war.
“The states in the Baltic States in particular see it as our duty to take responsibility for strengthening European security in view of the Russian war of aggression. With his announcement that a Bundeswehr brigade would be relocated to Lithuania, the Chancellor raised high hopes. Germany must not disappoint the resulting expectations in Lithuania. Words and deeds must not fall apart again now,” said Merz after a meeting with Lithuania’s Prime Minister Ingrida Simonyte in the capital, Vilnius.
According to reports, there is irritation as to how many German soldiers are actually stationed in Lithuania to protect NATO’s eastern flank. The agreement apparently leaves a lot of room for interpretation, WELT learned from delegation circles. It could therefore be much less than expected.
During his visit to Lithuania in June, Scholz announced that a German-led combat brigade would be stationed there, which raised great expectations. Of these, about 1,500 soldiers are to be stationed in Lithuania, with the command of the brigade. The other half stay in Germany.
In conversation with Merz, Lithuania’s Prime Minister Simonyte is said to have expressed the fear that this war is not just about Ukraine, but that Russian President Vladimir Putin is pursuing larger strategic goals. Putin must be stopped as soon as possible, with rapid and comprehensive arms deliveries to Ukraine. The sanctions imposed on Russia have been strong and the population is suffering, but Putin is not being impressed, it said.
