German Chancellor Olaf Scholz is a source of confusion in Europe due to his controversial stance on Ukraine, but "his madness has a method," writes Politico.
Among other things, Scholz has stumped his European allies by refusing to supply Kyiv with cruise missiles, allegedly because of the threat of retaliation from Russia, while criticising other countries for not providing enough assistance to Ukraine, the publication writes.
However, according to Politico, Scholz's inconsistency is actually a well-thought-out strategy. And here's why.
Ever since Scholz realised that Ukraine was capable of defending itself against Russia, his strategy has been to work in tandem with Washington, providing Ukraine with enough weapons and equipment to give Kyiv the means to survive, including anti-aircraft batteries and tanks.
However, Ukraine is not being provided with the weapons it needs to win.
Scholz still refuses to say that Ukraine must win the war.
Instead, he repeats that "Russia must not win and Ukraine must not lose," Politico notes.
Behind this lies a deep-seated fear of Russia, which, according to Politico, stems largely from World War II and the Cold War that followed in the 20th century.
According to Scholz, supplying Ukraine with weapons such as Taurus cruise missiles, with which it could destroy the Kerch bridge and possibly even strike Moscow, could provoke retaliation from Putin.
Similarly, Germany debated sending Leopard battle tanks a year ago. At that time, Scholz also conceded only after Washington agreed to send a small number of Abrams tanks to Ukraine. As a result, Russia had enough time to mine the front line to the point where Ukraine lost the initiative.
Scholz's behaviour suggests that his ultimate goal is for Ukraine to agree to peace talks, and the sooner the better. In this regard, the opposition of Republicans in the US Congress to a new aid package for Ukraine plays into Berlin's hands, Politico notes.
Background. As we wrote, the Taurus missile manufacturer is ready to train the Ukrainian military to use these missiles in practice. And the presence of the German military is not required for this, the company explained.