Wladimir Klitschko: We need more than just Taurus

Former world boxing champion Wladimir Klitschko, brother of Kiev's mayor Vitali, has called for a quicker decision on military support for Ukraine from Germany. "I simply cannot understand the ongoing delays. Germany has already behaved like this with the tanks, and now it's repeating itself with the Taurus," said Klitschko in an interview with the "Sächsische Zeitung" newspaper (Wednesday). His brother Vitali has been mayor of the Ukrainian capital since 2014.

The frontline of the war is shifting daily in the south and east of the country, soldiers are exhausted, Klitschko said. "And the delays in the delivery of weapons are critical for us. We have no more ammunition to defend ourselves - let alone attack. We don't just need (fighter jets of the type) F-16 and Taurus, we need more."

For weeks, there have been discussions in Germany about possible support for Ukraine with the Taurus cruise missile. In the past, Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) has repeatedly been accused of hesitating to supply weapons for Ukraine's defensive campaign against Russia. At the end of February, he clearly rejected the delivery of Taurus cruise missiles with a range of 500 kilometers, triggering a fierce debate in which not only the CDU/CSU but also his coalition partners, the Greens and FDP, opposed him. Klitschko is now hoping that Scholz will change his mind: "He can still change his mind, no matter how clearly he said no."

French President Emmanuel Macron also called for the deployment of Western troops in Ukraine to be left on the table as an option around three weeks ago. Scholz opposed this and ruled it out. According to Klitschko, no Western soldiers are needed in Ukraine: "Despite everything, we are doing it ourselves. What we need is the tools of war, i.e. weapons," he said. The war in Ukraine could still be stopped, said the ex-boxer.