Germany has become one of Ukraine's leading weapons suppliers in the 11 months since Russia's invasion, but Chancellor Olaf Scholz also has gained a reputation for hesitating to take each new step -- generating impatience among allies.
Berlin's perceived foot-dragging, most recently on the Leopard 2 battle tanks that Kyiv has long sought, is rooted at least partly in a post-World War II political culture of military caution, along with present-day worries about a possible escalation in the war.On Friday, Germany inched closer to a decision to deliver the tanks, ordering a review of its Leopard stocks in preparation for a possible green light.
That decision followed months of calls for Berlin to send the Marder and stoked pressure for it to move up another step to the Leopard tank. Speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, on Wednesday, Scholz listed some of the equipment Germany has sent to Ukraine, declaring that it marks "a profound turning point in German foreign and security policy."
Scholz "decided early on that he does not want to lead militarily on Ukraine assistance," Kleine-Brockhoff said, though "he wants to be a good ally and part of the alliance and in the middle of the pack."
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