Germany's Merz sees no point in supplying long-range Taurus missiles to Ukraine
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz no longer sees any need to supply Ukraine with long-range Taurus cruise missiles in view of Kyiv's technological progress on the battlefield.
Source: European Pravda, citing Merz at a Bundestag (German parliament) hearing reported by n-tv, a German television news channel
Details: Before being elected chancellor, Merz had repeatedly called on the German government to hand long-range missiles to Ukraine. Similar requests also came from Kyiv, but Berlin refused to transfer the missiles.
In his speech to parliament, Merz said he now sees no point in providing the Ukrainian forces with Taurus missiles because Ukraine is producing long-range weapons itself. He said Ukrainian long-range weapons are "far more effective than the relatively small number of Taurus cruise missiles that Germany could supply".
He also clarified his pre-election calls to provide Kyiv with long-range missiles. Merz said that at the time he had assumed that the Bundeswehr (German Armed Forces) had enough operational Taurus missiles that could be handed over to the Ukrainians.
Background:
- Franziska Brantner, co-chair of Germany's opposition Green Party, called on the government to strengthen Ukraine's air defence and supply Kyiv with long-range Taurus missiles amid intensified Russian attacks in January 2026.
- Officials in Friedrich Merz's government have avoided questions about transferring long-range missiles to Ukraine.
- At the end of May 2025, the defence ministers of Germany and Ukraine signed an agreement in Berlin on funding Ukrainian-made long-range weapons.
Support Ukrainska Pravda on Patreon!