LOS ANGELES.–Former Socialist Party leader German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, who was recently ousted by Christian Democrat Party[CDU] leader Friedrich Merz Feb. 27, refused to give Germany’s Taurus long-range missiles to Ukraine’s 47-year-old President Volodymyr Zelensky. Scholz said he didn’t want to escalate the conflict outside its current borders, refusing to supply Zelensky win long-range Taurus missiles. Now that Scholz is out, Zelensky presses Merz to deliver the Taurus long-range missiles, especially knowing that the U.S. under 78-year-old President Donald Trump wants the war to end as soon as possible. Trump has worked feverishly with his national security team and Russian counterparts to end the war seeking a ceasefire and peace talks, something that hasn’t happened yet. Zelensky new strategy to get more lethal weapons pits the EU against Trump, claiming Trump sold Ukraine out.
Trump wants to get Zelensky the best possible peace deal but thinks Ukraine must compromise and cede territory to Russia to get any peace deal. Zelensky has fought Trump tooth-and-nail, blowing up Feb. 28 in the Oval Office when he was supposed to sign a rare earth mineral deal. Reneging with any mineral deal, Zelensky said he was ready to sign any deal with Trump but never did. Russian President Vladimir Putin offered Trump a rare earth mineral deal with Russia that has every bit of the rare earth minerals as Ukraine. Still working on a peace deal with the Kremlin, Trump wants Zelensky and the EU to go along with his peace efforts. But judging by rhetoric coming from German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock she back’s Zelensky’s demand for Taurus long-range missiles. Getting new long-range missiles would certainly sabotage any peace deal.
Baerbock, one of Europe’s biggest Trump critics, is out the door soon as German Foreign Minister. She supports continuing the Ukraine War until Zelensky can remove every Russian soldier from Ukraine. When’s that supposed to happen? Baerbock hasn’t watched the last three years of Ukraine’s decimation fighting the Kremlin, losing some 25% of its best sovereign territory in Black sea region. Giving Zelensky long-range Taurus missiles would send the exact wrong message to Putin that Ukraine wants a peace deal. Trump has pushed the peace process along with Zelensky going kicking and screaming. Zelensky’s demands for peace include Russian remove its forces from Ukrainian soil and return every inch of sovereign territory, something completely unrealistic. Zelensky thinks he can fight the Kremlin for over three years and reverse all of Ukraine’s war losses.
Zelensky doesn’t know whether or no Merz will going along with his request for Taurus long-range missiles. “We will work on it,” Zelensky said, saying discussions with Berlin were ongoing. Zelensky thinks with Scholz out he has a better chance of getting Taurus missiles. “Yes, of course . . . It’s a little bit more than hope,” referring to the prospects of getting the missiles. Merz, when running against Scholz for Chancellor, seems leaning toward giving Ukraine the long-range Taurus missiles. Whether that happens or not, is entirely dependent on the kind of coalition the CDU can get when he puts together his government. “Where it is the Taurus or another system, we will have to see and coordinate with our European allies,” Merz said back in February. Brussels is still fighting over a post-war security force to help Ukraine maintain peace with the Russian Federation.
Merz understands that Germany cannot replace the U.S. in funding proxy war with the Kremlin. All the discussions in Paris and Brussels have been about a post-war coalition of the willing in any security force. But no one knows if Putin would approve EU troops parking in Ukraine in any post-war scenario. “Germany must not become a party to the war,” Merz said, showing that he’s more circumspect than Zelensky thinks about getting sucked into Kiev’s conflict with Moscow. Whether admitted to or not by Zelensky, Germany is leaning away from escalating the war when President Donald Trump has done everything possible to get a ceasefire and peace talks. Zelensky fears a loss of U.S. funding and has gone to his EU partners to ask for more cash-and-weapons. But it remains to be seen whether or not the EU wants to fund proxy war against the Kremlin.
Zelensky finds himself caught between a rock-and-a-hard-place trying to get more funding commitments from the EU on the Ukraine War. Baerbock won’t be around to slap his back in pushing her more belligerent attitude toward any peace settlement. Zelensky wants no part of any peace plan that does not give Ukraine back all its sovereign territory and pay Kiev for war reparations. Since that’s not going to happen with the Kremlin, Zelensky tries to cajole his EU friends into picking up where the U.S. left off. Furious with Trump over seeking normal diplomatic relations with Putin, Zelensky no longer sees the U.S. as his ally. When push comes to shove the EU is not going to sell out the United States to support Zelensky’s plan to keep the war going indefinitely. EU officials need to see how Zelensky gaslights them into rejecting Trump’s peace talks with Moscow.
About the Author
John M. Curtis writes politically neutral commentary analyzing spin in national and global news. He’s editor of OnlineColumnist.com and author of Dodging The Bullet and Operation Charisma.
