According to him, the use of Taurus require long -term training of the military.
“It was always clear that if we pass on Taurus, then this weapon would not be used by German soldiers, but Ukrainian .. The problem is that this system is extremely complex, and in order to train a soldier on it, you need at least six months. They have not been trained about this yet,” Merts said.
He indicated that he was discussing this topic at the level of the leadership of Ukraine and with partners to support Kyiv.
“I talked about this with [президентом Украины Владимиром] Zelensky, I also discussed this in the coalition. We haven't started yet. [Но] This is and remains an option, ”said the head of the German government.
Mertz emphasized that by transferring weapons, Germany, like other countries, did not become a party to the war with the Russian Federation. At the same time, Berlin intends to keep secret what kind of weapons to the Ukrainian defense forces.
“I want [нелегитимного президента РФ Владимира] Putin was a certain uncertainty regarding what we were doing military terms, ”he explained.
Context
Mertz did not exclude The possibility of providing Ukraine with Taurus missiles during his election campaign in November 2024 Put an ultimatum: If the Russian Federation does not stop shelling the civilian population in the Ukrainian territory per day, Germany will remove the range restrictions for the already transferred weapons. If this is not enough, in a week Ukraine will receive Taurus.
April 13, 2025 Mertz, who had not yet held the post of chancellor, confirmed Readiness to convey to Ukraine Taurus With the consent of other allies of Kyiv. The day after the statement of the Merz, the Minister of Defense of Germany Boris Pistorius said that he Carefully refers to the supply of Taurus To Ukraine. According to him, although there are good arguments in favor of such a decision, there are also “many good arguments against.”
On April 19, the Prime Minister of the German region Bavaria Marcus Zeder said that the decision on the possible transfer of large-range missiles Taurus The future Chancellor of Germany will accept.
May 26, Merz, who was already elected Chancellor of Germany, said that Great Britain, France, Germany and the United States lifted restrictions on a number of military supplies to Ukraine. The next day he announced that restrictions on the range of weapons supplied to Ukraine were removed A few months ago.
