Oleg Davygora19:36, 05.10.23

Olaf Scholz fears an escalation of tensions between his country and Russia.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz is refusing to send Ukraine powerful Taurus cruise missiles, the German equivalent of the British Storm Shadow, fearing that they will be used to attack the Kerch Bridge.

The German chancellor is resisting pressure from Britain and Ukraine to deliver the missiles, despite assurances from London that they will only be fired at targets approved by Berlin,  The Telegraph writes .

Scholz is particularly concerned that Kyiv could use Taurus missiles, which have a range of 310 miles, to hit the Kerch Bridge connecting Russia to occupied Crimea.

According to Bild, Scholz is also concerned that the delivery of Taurus missiles could lead to direct confrontation with Russia, as Germany would have to provide “geodata” or personnel on the ground to help Ukraine use the kit.

British officials tried to convince Scholz that he could avoid a major escalation with Russia by showing him intelligence that confirmed Ukraine was not striking Storm Shadows targets without British approval.

Scholz’s move could further isolate him from parts of the German defense establishment over the Taurus missile issue. Last week, Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann, chairwoman of the defense committee in the Bundestag, publicly called on the German chancellor to send the missiles. She said delaying such a step would “only prolong the suffering.”

She also argued that under international law, Ukraine has the right to carry out attacks on the territory of an occupying country “regardless of where the weapons were produced and who supplied them.”

German leaders have previously said the missile delivery could cause tensions between Germany and Russia to escalate too much, although they have not directly ruled out the move.

The issue of sending Taurus missiles to Ukraine

Kiev is particularly interested in acquiring Taurus missiles because they have a longer range than the Storm Shadows and French SCALPs that have already been delivered to Ukraine.

Their longer range, about 30 percent longer than their French and British counterparts, will allow pilots to fire missiles at targets from a safer distance and potentially avoid Russian air defense systems.

Scholz has a history of deep reluctance to send weapons to Ukraine, as in his previous dispute with Ukraine and Western allies over the slow delivery of Leopard 2 tanks.

(C)UNIAN 2023