The US has no problem with supplying German Leopard 2 main battle tanks or German Patriot anti-aircraft systems to Ukraine.
"Our position is the same in both cases: It is Germany's decision what Germany does," US Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman told journalists during her visit to Germany in Berlin.
Ukraine has been demanding the delivery of Leopard 2 main battle tanks from the federal government for months. Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) has repeatedly emphasized that Germany will not go it alone when it comes to supporting Ukraine with Western-style battle tanks. So far, no NATO country has delivered such tanks. Ukraine also wants US-type Patriot air defense systems, which Germany has so far only offered to NATO partner Poland to protect the border area with Ukraine.
Sherman said the federal government has done great things, shown leadership and made very tough decisions in providing military support to Ukraine. "I assume that Germany will do whatever it thinks is appropriate and right for Germany."
Sherman held talks at the Chancellery and the Foreign Office on Friday. Regarding US arms sales to Ukraine, she said: "No country has an endless supply. So we try to provide the Ukrainians with what they need." Ukraine will not be encouraged or enabled by the US to attack Russian territory, she stressed. There have been several drone attacks on Russian territory in the past few days, the originators of which are unclear.
nuclear threat
According to the US Deputy Secretary of State, the nuclear threat from Russia has decreased somewhat. "I think the general perception is that the risk is lower than it was some time ago," she said, adding, "We are talking about (Russia's President) Vladimir Putin." In his most recent statements on this last Wednesday, he sent out different signals.
Putin had prepared his country for a long war, but at the same time emphasized that he would only use nuclear weapons defensively. He dismissed fears of a nuclear first strike.
Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) also said this week, like Sherman, that the nuclear threat had decreased. "Russia has stopped threatening to use nuclear weapons in response to the international community drawing a red line," Scholz told the Funke media group and the French newspaper Ouest-France. "We've put a stake in that for now."
