The Biden administration’s decision to allow Ukraine to fire longer-range U.S. missiles into Russia is now being welcomed by German Foreign Minister Baerbock, of the Greens.
“Words are of no help in this situation in Ukraine,” Baerbock told RBB24-Inforadio in a new interview. She said it was about “not waiting for a (Russian) missile to fly over the border first.”
In addition, her party colleague, Economics Minister Robert Habeck, said he is in favor of supplying German-made Taurus cruise missiles to Ukraine.
Baerbock stated that some locations hit in Ukraine are often so close to the Russian border that Ukrainian air defenses do not have time to react.
“And now it’s about…. being able to destroy the military launch bases… And that is within the framework of international law, the right to self-defense, and every country would try to do exactly that, to protect its schools, its hospitals so that the children, the people can survive,” she said.
Baerbock said that she and her party “see this in the same way as our Eastern European partners, as the British, as the French and also as the Americans.”
The Greens were once considered a sharply anti-war party that advocated for American troops leaving German territory and Germany leaving NATO. The party has sharply diverged from its founding principles.
Now, there is discussion in Germany about supplying Taurus cruise missile before new snap elections, which are likely to happen in February 2025. So far, Chancellor Olaf Scholz has been opposed, saying the missile would allow targets up to 500 kilometers away to be hit.
“If we did that, we would be involved in the war,” he said at the end of April.
The majority of Germans are also against supplying such missiles to Ukraine, according to polls.
The lead candidate for the Christian Democrats (CDU), Friedrich Merz, is also known for his pro-war positions and has backed Germany supplying the missiles.
Shortly before the U.S. decided to approve long-range missile strikes, the Green Party’s candidate for chancellor, Robert Habeck, also said that if he won the election in February, he would approve Taurus missiles for Ukraine.
Meanwhile, Russia has reacted to the news that long-range missile strikes have been approved, stating that it could lead to World War III.
President Vladimir Putin already warned in mid-September that Western approval of the use of long-range missiles to target Russia would mean “the direct involvement of NATO countries, the United States and European countries in the war in Ukraine.” He made this assessment due to the fact that NATO’s military infrastructure and personnel would be actively involved in targeting and firing the missiles.
Russian MP Maria Butina said that Biden was risking “World War III.” Butina said she had “great hope” that U.S. President-elect Donald Trump would reverse the decision to use long-range missiles because it “seriously risks the start of a third world war, which is in no one’s interest,”
