German parliament backs heavy weapons supplies for Ukraine

Bloomberg

Germany’s parliament urged the government to quickly supply Ukraine with heavy weapons and other equipment to help its defense against Russia.
The three parties in Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s coalition and the largest opposition group — which combined hold over 80% of the seats in the lower house of parliament — teamed up to support a motion in a show of broad-based solidarity for Ukraine.
In the rare collaboration, the measure was passed with 586 out of 693 votes. Only far-right and far-left parties not back the plan. The motion also calls for an end to imports of Russian oil and gas and criticised China over its support for Moscow.
The parliamentary motion will put pressure on the government to continue taking action to support Kyiv. Scholz, who is in Japan on his first trip to Asia as chancellor, has faced intense criticism from international partners and domestic critics to do more to help Ukraine, including supplying tanks and other advanced weapons systems.
Entitled “Defend peace and freedom in Europe — comprehensive support for Ukraine,” the Bundestag motion calls on the government to expand deliveries of “heavy weapons and complex systems,” which could partly be supplied via swap deals with Nato partners. Under the proposed mechanism, countries could deliver Soviet-model gear to Ukraine for immediate deployment and Germany would replace them with more modern weapons.
The motion — backed by the ruling Social Democrats, Greens and Free Democrats as well as the Christian Democrat-led conservatives — contains strong language on China. It urges the government to tell Beijing that Germany and the European Union expect it to “give up its approval of the war and instead actively support efforts for a cease-fire.”
Lawmakers also want Germany to undertake steps to end Russian oil and gas imports as soon as possible. Once this happens, the government should exclude all Russian banks from the Swift international bank communication system.
Germany has shown signs of dropping its resistance to delivering heavy weapons. This week, it approved the delivery of 50 anti-aircraft tanks to Ukraine by the vehicle’s German manufacturer. The government has said more such steps will follow.
Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock listed equipment she said Germany has already delivered to Ukraine. This included thousands of anti-tank rocket launchers, Stinger anti-aircraft missiles, Strela surface-to-air missiles, anti-tank mines, machine guns, hand grenades and ammunition in the double-digit millions, she said during government questions in the Bundestag.
Scholz has been caught between pressure to be more proactive in helping Ukraine and pushback from some members of his Social Democratic Party, who fear Germany could be drawn into a wider conflict. Public opinion is also divided on whether Germany should meet Kyiv’s demands for heavy weaponry, polls show.
“Ukraine is fighting for its freedom and territorial integrity but it’s also fighting for European values and freedom,” Robert Habeck, the economy minister and vice chancellor, said.