In the midst of a budget crisis, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz is pushing to continue aid to Ukraine. The NATO Secretary General says he is confident about American aid.
Maintaining aid to Ukraine in its war against Russia is of importance “existential” for Europe, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said on Tuesday.
This support is “of existential importance (…) for Ukraine, that’s clear, but ultimately also for us in Europe”declared Mr. Scholz in a speech to German deputies in Berlin, where he pleaded to obtain budgetary resources accordingly, particularly for next year.
After the United States, Germany is the country that provides the most aid to Ukraine, including arms deliveries.
He is “clear that we must not relax our support for Ukraine” and in “resolving the energy crisis” which has followed the Russian invasion war since February 2022, he insisted, while questions are growing in public opinion as the conflict gets bogged down.
The chancellor was speaking at a time when his government is going through a budgetary crisis, which will force it to resort more than expected to borrowing to finance its spending, and therefore to let the public deficit slip.
This situation follows a ruling by the Constitutional Court, the highest court in the country, which canceled on November 15 the transfer of 60 billion euros of unused credits – coming from a special fund linked to the Covid-19 pandemic. – in a program dedicated to strategic green investments and support for industry.
The German government was censured for violating a constitutional rule known as “debt brake”: it prohibits a public deficit of more than 0.35% of the national gross domestic product (GDP), except in exceptional circumstances.
Berlin had invoked them in 2020, 2021 and 2022 but intended to respect the deficit ceiling this year. He can’t do it anymore. Berlin will ask MPs to vote for an increase in the federal budget deficit of 45 billion euros.
Mr. Scholz justified this measure by the need to finance “brakes on energy prices for 2023”reference to an anti-inflation shield to reduce the gas and electricity bills of households and businesses, following the surge in prices following the Russian war in Ukraine.
NATO seeks to convince of its support for Ukraine
NATO sought on Tuesday to convince of the continuation of its commitment in Ukraine in a difficult context, dominated by the status quo on the battlefield and the procrastination of the United States.
“I’m confident” on continued American military support for Ukraine, launched Alliance Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg at the start of a ministerial meeting in Brussels.
Aid from Washington has, however, been blocked in Congress for weeks, due to the reluctance of Republican elected officials to contribute more to the war effort in Ukraine. The United States has already paid $40 billion in military aid to Kyiv, and these elected officials believe that the rest can wait at a time when Israel, battling Hamas, also needs help.
And in Europe, several countries are reluctant to pay more. The payment of aid of 20 billion euros suggested by the head of European diplomacy Josep Borrell is blocked, and the overall envelope of 50 billion euros also envisaged to help Kyiv has for the moment remained a dead letter.
When they arrived in Brussels on Tuesday, several heads of diplomacy promised not to give up. “We will strongly reaffirm our support” to Ukraine, assured American Secretary of State Antony Blinken.
New memorandum of understanding between Kyiv and the European Parliament
The President of the Ukrainian Parliament Ruslan Stefanchuk was received by the President of the European Parliament in Brussels to sign a new memorandum of understanding on support for democracy.
This partnership will be strengthened by the establishment of a permanent presence of the European Parliament in Kyiv.
