Germany declares 'no one wants to send troops to Ukraine'

RT reported that German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said on March 8 that discussions about NATO deploying ground troops in Ukraine need to end, because no one really wants that to happen.

According to sources, Minister Pistorius was in Finland to visit German soldiers participating in NATO's Nordic Response exercise in the Arctic Circle.

While there, he held a joint press conference with his Finnish counterpart Antti Hakkanen. At the press conference, when asked about recent comments by French President Emmanuel Macron that the issue was still open, Mr Pistorius said: “Nobody really wants to put troops on the ground in Ukraine.” He added that discussions on that matter “should stop.”

His counterpart Hakkanen also expressed his agreement: "Currently, no one supports 'sending troops to the field'."

Last week, French President Macron said that no option should be ruled out, including sending troops to Ukraine, because Russia cannot win. However, only two Baltic states endorsed the idea, while most other NATO members publicly condemned it.

Minister Pistorius argued that, instead of sending troops to fight, what the West should do is increase the supply of ammunition and equipment to the Ukrainian army.

“Germany is the second-largest supporter of Ukraine in the world,” he noted, providing 7.5 billion euros ($8.2 billion) this year alone, adding that Berlin has sent “air defense, artillery, ammunition, whatever Ukraine needs.”

Responding to a question about Germany's decision not to send long-range Taurus missiles to Ukraine, Mr. Pistorius said that was unlikely to happen.

“We have always stressed that long-range missiles will not decide that war,” he told reporters, adding that German Chancellor Olaf Scholz had insisted, “there is a clear line that we will never cross, and that is becoming participants in the war.”

Last week, RT published audio recordings and transcripts of conversations between senior German Luftwaffe officers from mid-February in which they discussed using Taurus missiles to destroy the Crimean Bridge. According to RT, the generals argued that the missiles should be transferred and tried to figure out how to help Ukraine use them while maintaining plausible deniability.

Russia has repeatedly warned the United States and its allies that transferring weapons to Ukraine would not prevent Moscow from achieving its military campaign goals, but would only prolong the fighting and increase the risk of direct confrontation with NATO.