Germany moves to classify arms supplies to Ukraine amid Taurus debate

After three years of transparency, the new federal government will apparently once again keep German arms deliveries to Ukraine largely secret.

“In the future, the German government will greatly reduce the volume of reports on weapons system deliveries,” the media states.

The main goal, as it is specified, is “to deprive the aggressor of military advantage in the war in Ukraine.” This is part of a “warfare tactic” aimed at reducing public debate around arms deliveries.

“In this way, Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s (CDU) government is returning to a practice that already existed immediately after the start of the war under the traffic light coalition of Chancellor Olaf Scholz,” the journalists note.

In June 2022, under public pressure, the German government decided to publish a detailed list of all arms deliveries online. As of today, all delivered weapons and their quantities are listed on the Bundeswehr website.

For example, it states that Germany has delivered 25 self-propelled howitzers, 121 Leopard tanks, 1,050 combat drones, and 478,000 artillery shells.

“The Scholz government wanted to prove that Germany was the largest supplier of weapons to Ukraine after the United States. The list was last updated on May 6, the day the new federal government was appointed,” the media say.

How the Bundestag will be informed about future arms deliveries remains unknown. Unlike the deployment of troops, parliamentary approval is not required.

“However, the parliament will likely be informed about arms deliveries in a closed session of the Defense Committee,” the journalists suggest.

About Taurus deliveries to Ukraine

Spiegel notes that the federal government’s change of course also affects the “sensitive open question” in Friedrich Merz’s Ukraine policy — whether the Taurus cruise missile will be delivered.

During the election campaign, Merz emphasized that he was ready to supply weapons, but only in coordination with allies who had already supplied or possessed similar weapons. In Europe, these are France and the United Kingdom.

French President Emmanuel Macron already stated on Tuesday during Merz’s visit to Paris, responding to a journalist’s question about the possible delivery of German Taurus missiles, that they no longer want to talk about it.

“We will be honest with the Ukrainians, we will meet their needs, but we will speak about it as little as possible. That is reasonable for protecting the Ukrainians,” he said.

That is why, according to Macron, the allies decided “not to give clear information on certain matters.”

“We will not talk about categories and models of weapons at every press conference. Because the Russian army may hear the answer to your questions,” the French president added.

Coalition of the Willing in Kyiv

Leaders of the Coalition of the Willing arrived in Kyiv on May 10. It includes Germany, the United Kingdom, France, and Poland.

It was launched in March after a conflict between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and US President Donald Trump at their meeting in the White House.

New German Chancellor Friedrich Merz expressed hope that “an agreement on a ceasefire in Ukraine will be reached this weekend.”

France and the Nordic countries also spoke in favor of the unconditional 30-day ceasefire proposed by Trump and supported by Ukraine.