**History shows need to stand up to Russian aggression, German chancellor says in speech to mark end of second world war**
Chancellor Olaf Scholz said Germany would continue to send heavy weapons to Ukraine, saying it was its historical responsibility to help the government in Kyiv defend itself against Russian aggression.
He made the comments during a speech to mark the 77th anniversary of the Allied victory in the second world war.
“We have learned a central lesson from the disastrous history of our country between 1933 and 1945,” he said in the televised address. “No more war. No more genocide. No more tyranny.”
“In the present situation that can mean only one thing: we defend justice and freedom — at the side of the victim. We support Ukraine in its fight against the aggressor.” Not doing so, he added, would be like “capitulating to brute force”.
Scholz’s speech reflected the shift in his thinking on arming Ukraine. He had initially ruled out providing Kyiv with heavy weapons such as tanks and armoured vehicles, saying this could make Germany a party to the war and trigger a nuclear conflict with Russia.
But in recent days he changed his tune. On Friday, the government announced it would be providing Ukraine with seven self-propelled howitzers, a type of artillery piece known as the PzH 2000. That followed a decision to give Kyiv around 50 Gepard (“Cheetah”) anti-aircraft guns.
Officials have made clear that these will not be the last such deliveries. “For the first time in our postwar history we have sent weapons — including heavy weapons — into a war zone, on a large scale and always carefully weighing it up,” Scholz said. “And we will continue to do so.”
The decision to step up military aid to Kyiv has proven controversial however. The renowned feminist Alice Schwarzer was one of a number of intellectuals who signed an open letter to the government late last month expressing the fear that delivering heavy weapons would lead to a third world war.
Have he started?
I love Scholz’s speech. I listened to it on DW News. It was very compelling but I am concerned about the delivery time for the heavy weapons. Ukraine needs the weapons delivered as soon as possible.
>He had initially ruled out providing Kyiv with heavy weapons such as tanks and armoured vehicles, saying this could make Germany a party to the war and trigger a nuclear conflict with Russia.
>But in recent days he changed his tune.
That’s a really good thing indeed. Wonder what was the tipping point. This moment will go into Ukrainian and German history books.
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**History shows need to stand up to Russian aggression, German chancellor says in speech to mark end of second world war**
Chancellor Olaf Scholz said Germany would continue to send heavy weapons to Ukraine, saying it was its historical responsibility to help the government in Kyiv defend itself against Russian aggression.
He made the comments during a speech to mark the 77th anniversary of the Allied victory in the second world war.
“We have learned a central lesson from the disastrous history of our country between 1933 and 1945,” he said in the televised address. “No more war. No more genocide. No more tyranny.”
“In the present situation that can mean only one thing: we defend justice and freedom — at the side of the victim. We support Ukraine in its fight against the aggressor.” Not doing so, he added, would be like “capitulating to brute force”.
Scholz’s speech reflected the shift in his thinking on arming Ukraine. He had initially ruled out providing Kyiv with heavy weapons such as tanks and armoured vehicles, saying this could make Germany a party to the war and trigger a nuclear conflict with Russia.
But in recent days he changed his tune. On Friday, the government announced it would be providing Ukraine with seven self-propelled howitzers, a type of artillery piece known as the PzH 2000. That followed a decision to give Kyiv around 50 Gepard (“Cheetah”) anti-aircraft guns.
Officials have made clear that these will not be the last such deliveries. “For the first time in our postwar history we have sent weapons — including heavy weapons — into a war zone, on a large scale and always carefully weighing it up,” Scholz said. “And we will continue to do so.”
The decision to step up military aid to Kyiv has proven controversial however. The renowned feminist Alice Schwarzer was one of a number of intellectuals who signed an open letter to the government late last month expressing the fear that delivering heavy weapons would lead to a third world war.
Have he started?
I love Scholz’s speech. I listened to it on DW News. It was very compelling but I am concerned about the delivery time for the heavy weapons. Ukraine needs the weapons delivered as soon as possible.
>He had initially ruled out providing Kyiv with heavy weapons such as tanks and armoured vehicles, saying this could make Germany a party to the war and trigger a nuclear conflict with Russia.
>But in recent days he changed his tune.
That’s a really good thing indeed. Wonder what was the tipping point. This moment will go into Ukrainian and German history books.