Germany’s government has halted new military aid to Ukraine, supposedly prompted by a need to reduce spending. However, the move comes after new revelations that Ukraine may have been behind the Nord Stream pipeline sabotage.
Germany has issued an arrest warrant against a Ukrainian national accused of sabotaging the Nord Stream pipeline, which supplied Germany with Russian natural gas. The suspect, a diver who was formerly part of the Ukrainian armed forces, is said to have been part of a small team, including Ukrainian special forces, that carried out the pipeline sabotage, which Western leaders previously blamed on Russia.
The aid moratorium affects only new requests for funding, leaving previously approved aid unaffected. Finance Minister Christian Lindner informed the German defense ministry on August 5 that future aid will come from frozen Russian assets, not Germany’s federal budget.
The G7 nations agreed in June to use approximately $300 billion of immobilized Russian assets to secure a $50 billion loan for Ukraine. However, the details of the plan are still under negotiation and may take months to finalize.
The dispute over Ukraine aid has exacerbated tensions within Germany’s ruling coalition, which has already been fraught with disagreements over various issues, including the budget and welfare policies.
Green leader and Economy Minister Robert Habeck, who plans to run for Chancellor in the 2025 election, highlighted the coalition’s struggles to find common ground, saying, “The ideas are falling apart.”
