NATO Chief deems Zelenskiy’s criticism of Scholz “unfair” over refusal to send Taurus cruise missiles
BERLIN – NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said he considered the sometimes-harsh criticism of German Chancellor Olaf Scholz by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy to be unjustified, following Scholz’s refusal to send long-range missiles to Ukraine, news wire DPA reported on Monday.
Although Germany has been a vital ally of Ukraine, its hesitation in providing long-range Taurus cruise missiles has been a source of frustration in Kyiv amid its intensifying conflict with Russia.
“I have often told Zelenskiy that he should stop criticising Olaf Scholz, because I think it is unfair,” DPA quoted Rutte as saying in an interview.
Rutte also said that he, unlike Scholz, would supply Ukraine with Taurus cruise missiles and would not set limits on their use.
“In general, we know that such capabilities are very important for Ukraine,” Rutte said, adding that it was not up to him to decide what allies should deliver.
Scholz has resisted Zelenskiy’s requests for Germany’s Taurus cruise missile, whose range and power he said would bring an unacceptable risk of escalation and might be construed as tantamount to Germany joining the war.
Accordingly, his Social Democratic Party (SPD) reportedly rejected the delivery of Taurus missiles to Ukraine in the party’s program for the upcoming February elections, the Berliner Morgenpost reported on Dec. 15, citing a leaked draft program.
“We stand by Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s decision not to deliver the Taurus cruise missile from the Bundeswehr’s stocks,” the SPD program reportedly reads, adding that weapons deliveries should come with “prudence and a sense of proportion.”
President Zelensky previously stated that Germany’s refusal to provide Ukraine with long-range missiles is linked to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s nuclear threats.
The conservative opposition leader Friedrich Merz, frontrunner in the race to become Germany’s next chancellor, used an election-time visit to Ukraine on Dec 9th to condemn Olaf Scholz’s refusal to follow Britain, France, and the United States in sending Kyiv longer-range weapons capable of striking deep inside Russian territory.
The Taurus cruise missile is one of the most powerful weapons in the German army’s arsenal. With a range of 500 kilometres (300 miles), it can be launched from a fighter jet. Thereby, military experts believe the Taurus, which is equipped with a bunker-busting warhead, could be instrumental in destroying targets like the Kersh Bridge that links Crimea with Russia’s mainland.
