Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) only wants to approve additional arms deliveries to Ukraine for three billion euros before the federal election even if they are financed by suspending the debt brake. The help is only possible via a separate borrowing, “because otherwise the money is not there,” he said in an RTL interview.
Scholz had already made this proposal in the traffic light negotiations on the 2025 budget, where the coalition was ultimately broken. “I would decide even now that if everyone joins in a decision: we finance it extra through loans.” But then “some would have to jump over their shadow,” said the chancellor. Anyone who does not want to say where the missing means should come from. Scholz estimated the hole in the not yet adopted budget at 26 billion euros by 2025.
In an interview with the “Westphalian News” and the “Westphalia leaf” specified Scholz, even if you asquire that everything money is not spent in the course of the year, there is probably a gap in cover of at least 16 billion euros. “If we want to decide on another three billion euros for bilateral arms aid for Ukraine, it would be an uncovered check.”
The FDP head and former finance minister Christian Lindner excludes a suspension of the debt brake. He wants to finance aid for Ukraine and the Greens through a “unscheduled edition”. However, according to Article 112 of the Basic Law, this would only be possible under certain conditions. “It may only be granted in the event of an unforeseen and irreplaintated need.” An example of such an issue was instant aid for flood victims in 2013 after severe flooding in parts of Germany.
Source: https://www.zeit.de/news/2025-01/15/scholz-will-ukraine-milliarden-nur-ueber-schulden-finanzieren
On Monday, members of the Bundestag passed a vote of no confidence in the government of German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Bavarian Radio reports.
“The chancellor put up a confidence vote in the Bundestag and lost it as planned. This means that the president will dissolve the parliament, and elections will be held in February,” the radio station notes.
394 MPs expressed no confidence in Scholz’s government, 207 supported the government, and 116 abstained.
Scholz himself had previously called for such a vote, as European media reported that it would allow him to hold early elections. Now, Scholz is expected to ask German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier to dissolve the Bundestag. If the parliament is dissolved, elections in Germany must be held within 60 days from the date of dissolution.
Earlier, Scholz, who heads the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD), agreed with opposition parties on plans to hold early elections on February 23, 2025.
In November, the ruling coalition in Germany collapsed due to disagreements over Scholz’s economic policy.
At the same time, German parties are already preparing for early elections. The SPD leadership has decided to re-nominate Scholz as a candidate for chancellor. This decision still has to be approved by the party congress on January 11, 2025, but German media noted that this is just a formality. So far, the CDU leader Friedrich Merz, German Vice Chancellor Robert Habeck from the Union 90/Greens party, and the head of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party Alice Weidel have also been considered candidates for the chancellorship.
Earlier, the Experts Club think tank released a video review of the most important elections in the world – https://youtu.be/73DB0GbJy4M?si=k5LDANC7lkpbK0Nh
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz says that Germany will soon provide Ukraine with the third Patriot system, IRIS-T and Gepard missiles, rockets and ammunition.
“Ukraine’s most important need today is ammunition and weapons, especially air defense. Therefore, in the coming weeks and months, we will supply Ukraine with the third Patriot system, IRIS-T, Cheetahs, missiles and ammunition,” he said at a conference on Ukraine’s recovery on Tuesday.
According to him, since February 24, 2022, Germany has provided Ukraine with 30 billion euros in military aid, as well as billions in humanitarian aid.
“I would like to address all those present and ask you to support our initiative to increase the capacity of the Ukrainian air defense with everything you can,” Scholz urged.
AMMUNITION, GERMANY, Iris-T, missiles, Patriot, SCHOLZ, гепард
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, in an article written for the Frankfurter Allgemeine newspaper, said that Europe knew from the beginning that sanctions against Russia would be in place for a long time.
“It was clear to us from the very beginning that the sanctions would have to be maintained for a long time,” the politician wrote.
He repeated his statement, made in May in an interview with the ZDF television channel, that the West would not agree to the lifting of sanctions in the event of a peaceful settlement of the Ukrainian conflict on “conditions imposed by Russia.”
At the same time, he acknowledged that most Germans are suffering from the consequences of the restrictions, including the high cost of gasoline and food.
“This path is not easy even for such a strong, prosperous country as ours,” Scholz added.
The article states that “the world economy is facing a challenge that has not been seen for decades,” and no country in the world can stand alone against such a development.
In this regard, Scholz called for the unity of the EU countries in policy towards Russia, noting that the EU has already demonstrated it.
“But we must not rest on our laurels,” he explained, adding that the EU must come to an agreement in other areas.
“For me, this means: no more selfish blockades of European decisions by individual member states. No more national single efforts that harm Europe as a whole,” he stressed.
In his words, “we simply can no longer afford a national veto, for example, in foreign policy, if we want to continue to be heard in a world of competing great powers.”
As reported, the EU Foreign Affairs Council will be held on Monday in Brussels. He plans to work in connection with the Ukrainian situation in three areas: support for Ukraine, sanctions against the Russian Federation, informing the international community about the consequences of the conflict, a source in the EU said.
“On the first part, we believe that there will be a discussion of additional military support for Ukraine,” a senior EU official told reporters on condition of anonymity, briefing them on the agenda of the ministerial meeting on Friday.
“There will be a discussion on sanctions (against the Russian Federation). We are preparing a number of measures,” the media interlocutor continued. He confirmed that during the discussion, council members will discuss a proposal to ban Russian exports of gold.
At the same time, the official noted that “we do not expect any decision on sanctions on Monday.”
With regard to military assistance to Kyiv, Brussels expects from the EU Council a “political decision” of the member states on the fifth tranche in accordance with the instructions of the European Council.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz rejects the possibility of lifting sanctions against Minsk in exchange for the transit of grain from Ukraine through Belarus.
“This in no way means that we should abandon the sanctions that we imposed on Lukashenka,” Scholz said in Vilnius on Tuesday at a joint press conference with Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda, Latvian and Estonian Prime Ministers Krisjanis Karins and Kaja Kallas .
According to the chancellor, Western countries are looking for ways to safely export these agricultural products from Ukraine in order to avoid food shortages in the world.
“It is Russia’s responsibility that grain cannot be taken out of Ukraine (. . .). We will try to find a solution, the UN is also trying to find a solution,” Scholz said.
He also noted that when unblocking the port of Odessa, it is necessary to ensure that “Russia does not abuse such decisions.”
The possibility of exporting Ukrainian grain through Belarus was previously rejected by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada Ruslan Stefanchuk invited German Chancellor Olaf Scholz to visit Ukraine and speak in the Ukrainian parliament, the press service of the Verkhovna Rada office reports.
“Scholz thanked for this invitation, and I really hope that he will accept it,” Stefanchuk said in an interview with the ARD television channel, commenting on the results of the meeting with Scholz.
“Germany is the leader of the EU, and Germany’s opinion on Ukraine’s EU candidacy is very important. I think that I was able to dispel all the skeptical fears of Olaf Scholz and I really hope for his positive decision at the European Council summit,” the speaker of the Verkhovna Rada added.
