A German government spokesperson has dismissed concerns that the country could be seen as a party to the conflict in Ukraine due to the decision to allow Ukraine to use German-supplied weapons to attack military targets in Russia.
“It was always clear that by supplying weapons to Ukraine we would not become part of the war and would not become a party to it,” deputy government spokesman Wolfgang Büchner said in Berlin on Friday.
Under international law, it has also never been disputed that Ukraine was allowed to defend itself against Russia’s ongoing invasion, which is contrary to international law, Büchner said.
The German government announced on Friday that it was lifting conditions that prevented Ukraine from using German-supplied weapons to attack Russian territory.
Several other Western countries have also made similar decisions in recent days. Germany and others cited Russia’s current military offensive against the Ukrainian city of Kharkiv, which is near the Russian border, to justify the change.
When asked whether the German decision explicitly applied to Kharkov’s defense, Büchner said there was a “factual connection.”
The change of course obviously had something to do with ‘the development of the war and close coordination with it’ [Germany’s] close partners,” he said.
