For once, the Deputy Foreign Minister of Ukraine welcomes the behavior of the SPD parliamentary group leader. During the visit to Kiev, Mützenich could see the Russian aggression with his own eyes, says Melnyk. However, the ex-ambassador doubts that he will change his attitude towards arms deliveries.
Ukrainian Deputy Foreign Minister Andriy Melnyk has called on the SPD leadership to follow up their visit to Kiev with action. He hopes that SPD leader Lars Klingbeil will "recognize the need to persuade the federal government to make further courageous decisions, above all to release fighter jets," said Melnyk.
Klingbeil surprisingly arrived in Kiev this morning together with SPD parliamentary group leader Rolf Mützenich to hold talks with representatives of the government and parliament. Melnyk said it was important that the SPD leaders finally visit Ukraine "to see the horrors of Russian aggression with their own eyes."
However, the former Ukrainian ambassador in Berlin doubted that Mützenich would change his position on arms deliveries after his return to Germany. "It remains very questionable whether this will mean that Mr. Mützenich will no longer put the brakes on German arms deliveries."
At the end of January, Melnyk Mützenich attacked sharply. "This guy is the most cynical and disgusting German politician," Melnyk wrote in English on Twitter. "He bears full responsibility for this disastrous image of Germany in the world. He will forever go down in history as the most valuable Russian asset since the start of massive Russian aggression by blocking support to Ukraine."
In the Ukraine, Mützenich has repeatedly been offended because of his reluctance to deliver arms and his promotion of diplomacy. So far, neither the SPD nor the federal government have wanted to take part in the discussion about the delivery of fighter jets. "The debate makes no sense," Chancellor Olaf Scholz said at the end of February. However, several NATO countries have shown themselves open to such a step.
