Prime Minister of Poland Mateusz Morawiecki publicly called on Germany to give real help to Ukraine and ridiculed the offer of 5,000 helmets for Ukraine’s defense as a “joke.” Ukraine had for weeks been begging Germany to change course on arms supplies and on approving strong sanctions against Russia.
Morawiecki has been touring Europe’s capital cities to lobby for the harshest possible sanctions against Russia. He went to Berlin together with Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausea to prick Germany’s conscience on Ukraine and to lobby for higher German defense spending.
He will be highly satisfied that Chancellor Olaf Scholz has committed Germany to spending the NATO recommended 2 percent of its GDP on defense, as well as the decisions on supplying Ukraine with arms and cutting Russia off from the SWIFT system.
Morawiecki did not mince his words. “Germany cannot be egoistic, Putin must be stopped. We have to offer Ukraine real aid. You must remember that it is not just gas that is flowing through the Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipelines but also the blood of soldiers, mothers and children.”
Announcing his decision, Scholz posted on Twitter. “The Russian attack marks a turning point. It is our duty to do everything in our power to support Ukraine in its defense against the invader — Putin’s army.”
The German media has no doubt that the Polish prime minister and Ukraine have succeeded, together with other European partners in changing course. According to Der Spiegel magazine, Germany has been a weak link in the fight against Russian aggression and that Morawiecki hit the nail on the head when he publicly identified the EU’s Achilles heel as being dependent on Russian gas.
Rarely has a visit by a Polish prime minister to Germany been more of a diplomatic success than this weekend’s trip.
