Germany blocks Taurus missiles transfer to Ukraine over fears of confrontation with Russia

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has reportedly blocked the long-range Taurus missiles for Ukraine over fears of direct confrontation with Russia. Germany's ruling coalition had approved sending Taurus missiles to Ukraine on September 4, according to the American newspaper Wall Street Journal. Earlier yesterday, the German MP Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann took to her official account on the microblogging site X, saying that the German Chancellor Scholz "alone blocks this decision within the coalition."

Sending long-range Taurus missiles to Ukraine could ignite 'direct confrontation'

German Chancellor Scholz feared that sending the long-range Taurus missiles would require the German personnel on the ground in Ukraine to work with the missiles and train the Ukrainian soldiers. This move, he said, would require a vote from parliament as Olaf feared that the presence of German boots on the ground in Ukraine would most likely cause "a direct confrontation with Russia." In the German parliament, the Taurus missiles have been a subject of debate and discussions as many lawmakers opposed it fearing consequences. It also remains unclear why Scholz would need the physical presence of the German soldiers on the ground in Ukraine. 

Kyiv's allies have been sending long-range weaponry to war-torn Ukraine to change the course of the ongoing counteroffensive. Recently, US President Joe Biden granted Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy the request to send the Army Tactical Missile System, or ATACMS. He, however, has refrained from making the announcement public. The ATACMS would be an integral inclusion in Ukraine’s arsenal of long-range precision-strike systems amid the counteroffensive.

Germany has been trying to follow in the suit of US and had mulled sending the Taurus missiles to Ukraine, however, Russia’s Foreign Ministry had previously warned Ukraine's allies against the supply of the longer-range missiles saying that they would cross the "red line” and become “a party to the conflict” in Ukraine. Russia's Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova at a conference said that Russia “reserves the right to defend its territory." “If Washington decides to supply longer-range missiles to Kyiv, then it will be crossing a red line, and will become a direct party to the conflict,” Zakharova told reporters at a state address.