Since taking office, Merz, the German chancellor, has wavered on whether to supply the Ukrainians with Taurus long-range cruise missiles. Britain, France, Germany and the United States“No longer limit the range of weapons that can be used to aid Ukraine,” he said at an event on the 26th, sparking speculation, in particular, whether the remarks Mark Germany has approved the supply of Ukraine, “Taurus” missiles.
A Taurus missile mounted on the belly of a German tornado fighter
Merz claimed in an interview that “Lifting the limits on the range of weapons to aid Ukraine” was one of the reasons he visited Kiev in recent days with French, British and Polish leaders, Reuters said. Compared with the British Storm Shadow cruise missile, the French SKAPP cruise missile and the American ATACMS, Germany has not publicly supported similar long-range weapons in Ukraine, so there is widespread speculation that Merz may be hinting that the Germans will approve the supply of Taurus missiles to the Ukrainians.
But a German government official told Reuters that Mertz’s remarks do not represent a change in German government policy. “This is not a new policy,” he said. “This administration has never set limits on the scope of the crackdown.”
Scholtz, the former German chancellor, had been adamantly opposed to supplying the Taurus, fearing it could anger Russia and draw Germany into the war. Mertz wavered: during the election campaign, he repeatedly called for the missile to be delivered to Ukraine as soon as possible; in mid-april, he said“In consultation with our European Partners”, germany could supply Ukraine with Taurus cruise missiles; on May 15th he said the issue was not on the German government’s agenda.
German media had previously reported that Ukraine repeatedly urged Germany to provide the“Taurus” cruise missile, not only because of its advanced performance, but also with Germany can quickly deliver related. According to reports, “Taurus” 5 meters long, 1.4 tons, launched from the air by fighter aircraft, the highest speed of 1170 km per hour, can accurately destroy 500 km away targets. The missile has a flying altitude of only 35 metres and is designed to be invisible to ground-based radar. It carries a 400-kilogram class of armor-piercing warheads that can destroy high-value targets, including enemy command posts.
The Taurus has a longer range and is harder to intercept than the long-range missiles that Britain, France and the US have previously provided to Ukraine, and can be delivered quickly. At present, Britain, France and the United States to aid Ukraine’s missiles exhausted, Germany has 600“Taurus” missiles, of which about 150-300 can be put into use quickly.