Zelensky Is Expected in Berlin as Merz Steps Forward as Key Backer of Ukraine

New York Times

27-05-2025

President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine is expected to travel to Berlin on Wednesday in his first visit to Germany since Chancellor Friedrich Merz took office earlier this month.
The visit comes at a crucial moment in the German-Ukrainian relationship.
With doubts looming about the future of America's commitment to Kyiv, Mr. Merz has stepped forward as a leading figure in the European alliance supporting Ukraine. That has meant eschewing the cautious stance of his predecessor, Olaf Scholz, even as he faces opposition from within his governing coalition on expanding German military support.
After Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, it took over a year for Mr. Scholz to invite Mr. Zelensky to Berlin. Though the Ukrainian leader has not been to Berlin since October, the one-day visit will be his third meeting with Mr. Merz since the chancellor took office on May 6.
What are the leaders likely to discuss?
A major topic of conversation will likely be military aid in general and, specifically, the Taurus cruise missile, a system jointly developed by Germany and Sweden.
The large size, advanced navigation system and 310-mile range of the Taurus means it can accurately deliver bigger strikes deeper into Russian territory than other missiles in Ukraine's arsenal.
The Taurus has long been at the top of Mr. Zelensky's wish list. Though Britain and France already provide Ukraine with their jointly developed SCALP/Storm Shadow cruise missile, the Taurus would be able to strike as far as bridges connecting the Crimean Peninsula to mainland Russia.
Germany has provided or committed about $32 billion in total military assistance to Ukraine, including weapons and materiel drawn from German military's stocks, and training for approximately 10,000 Ukrainian soldiers, according to the German government.
What has been Mr. Merz's stance on the Taurus?
The previous government, led by Mr. Scholz, a Social Democrat, refused to provide the Taurus to Ukraine, fearing it would escalate the conflict.
Mr. Merz repeatedly criticized that stance last fall, and during the election campaign earlier this year, he said that he would reverse it.
At one point he suggested Mr. Scholz give an ultimatum to President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia, saying that as chancellor he would send Taurus missiles if Russia did not stop bombing civilians, though he later walked that back.
In an interview in April, before Mr. Merz took office, Mr. Zelensky expressed optimism that the incoming government would reverse course.
'We will work on it,' he said. 'It's a little bit more than hope.'
What has he said since becoming chancellor?
Since taking office, Mr. Merz has been vague about whether he would send the missile to Ukraine. In his inaugural speech to Parliament, he hinted that he would expand the delivery of weapons and also said Germany would no longer publicly specify which weapons were being provided to maintain a level of ambiguity designed to help Ukrainian war efforts.
In an interview with the German broadcaster ZDF on May 15, he said that the Taurus was 'not in the cards at the moment.'
When Mr. Merz said Monday that Germany would no longer place range restrictions on the weapons it sends to Ukraine, the question about Taurus deliveries came up immediately.
'There are no more range limitations for weapons delivered to Ukraine,' he told an audience at a political conference in Berlin on Monday. 'Neither from the British, nor the French, nor from us. Not from the Americans, either.'
But as he noted on Tuesday, those restrictions had been lifted months ago. And given that the kinds of weapons Germany has delivered so far do not generally exceed a working range of under 50 miles, the decision to lift limits has not changed the course of the war.
'Germany is currently not supplying any relevant long-range weapon systems,' said Roderich Kiesewetter, a former German Army colonel who is now a member of parliament in Mr. Merz's party. 'To create the desired strategic ambiguity, we should therefore send an initial, albeit insufficient, signal by starting the training of Ukrainian soldiers on the system.'
How has the missile been an issue in Germany?
Mr. Merz has faced significant pushback from members of the Social Democrats, the center-left party that governs in a coalition with Mr. Merz's conservative Christian Democrats. And behind closed doors, even some members of Mr. Merz's party are hesitant about sending the system to Ukraine.
After Mr. Merz's inaugural speech to Parliament, members of the Social Democrats reiterated their opposition to the Taurus.
'We do not want to become a party to the war, and so we have always rejected the Taurus shipment,' said Matthias Miersch, the leader of Social Democratic lawmakers in Parliament. 'That remains our position.'
The party had even written their opposition to sending the weapons system in the official program it used to campaign for February's vote.
Lars Klingbeil, the finance minister and a leading Social Democrat, said Monday that Mr. Merz's comments did not represent a new policy, implying that his party had not shifted its position on not providing the weapon.