The conflict between Russia and Ukraine. US media: Germany has blocked the supply of arms from Estonia to Ukraine

The US Wall Street Journal wrote on Friday that “Germany is preventing its NATO ally from providing military support to Ukraine” by refusing to issue permits to export weapons of German origin to Kiev. It was determined that this was Estonia and that in the case of this country, Berlin was also refusing to allow artillery to be sent to Ukraine by third countries because the weapons, according to Estonian and German officials, came from Germany.

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According to journalists, Germany did not allow the export of 122 mm D-30 howitzers with a range of almost 20 kilometers. The equipment was originally stationed in East Germany and was sold to Finland in the 1990s, which resold it to Estonia in 2009. Under the agreement, both countries must agree to further export of these weapons, but the German government refused to grant them.

Michael O’Hanlon, a military expert at the Brookings Institution, a Washington-based think tank, told WSJ. If he is unable to make such a modest change in the law, it calls into question his leadership skills in foreign policy – in his assessment.

Journalists of the “Wall Street Journal” note that although Germany is one of the largest arms exporters in the world, as well as towards third countries such as Egypt and Pakistan, Berlin has a policy that prohibits the supply of arms to active conflict areas. This was also talked about by the Head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Annalina Barbuk, during her recent visit to Kiev. – She emphasized that our restrictive position is well-known and rooted in history.

And the head of the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry, Dmytro Kuleba, tried to calm the situation, noting that “the dialogue with Germany on this matter will continue.”

The supply that Germany has blocked will already be another batch of arms from Estonia to Ukraine. In recent days, the United States has allowed Tallinn to supply Javelin anti-tank systems, and Latvia and Lithuania to export Stinger anti-aircraft missiles. Estonia was also supposed to provide support for the cybersecurity of the Ukrainian army.

Also on Friday, German newspaper Der Spiegel wrote that Chancellor Olaf Schulz had rejected President Joe Biden’s invitation to talk about the crisis in Ukraine. The official translation is that the German chancellor’s decision follows the completed calendar. That includes a visit to Madrid, but also – as shown – the desire to show a presence in the country at a time when it is battling an epidemic. A German government spokesman declined to comment on this information.

Russia It has already massed more than 100,000 soldiers on the Ukrainian border. The West announced that in the event of a Russian invasion of Ukraine, it would respond with severe sanctions. in a GenevaAnd Kiev I Wesla There are diplomatic talks going on about this conflict.