Baerbock: Berlin to support Ukraine financially and militarily as long as it takes

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock pledged long-term support in the war against Russia to Ukraine if necessary.

According to her, Ukraine also protects the freedom and peaceful order of Europe, so Berlin supports Kyiv "financially and militarily as long as it takes," Bild reports.

Baerbock noted that the war "could last for years."

"Of course, I would like the war to end as soon as possible, but, unfortunately, we have to assume that Ukraine will still need new heavy weapons from its friends next summer," said the German foreign minister.

She warned against talks of war fatigue in Germany given the months of fighting and noted that the world would have to adjust to the fact that this war could last for years.

"Of course, everyone now feels the consequences of Putin's energy war with their wallets. The social division of Europe is part of Putin's war. We must prevent this," the diplomat said.

She added that there was a difficult road ahead, noting that part of the political responsibility of the authorities was to mitigate the social imbalance caused by high energy prices. At the same time, the politician categorically rejected the calls of Bundestag Vice President Wolfgang Kubicki to use the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline because Russian gas pipelines had long since turned into a weapon in a hybrid war.

Baerbock emphasized that the Russian government would not abandon its intention to subjugate Ukraine and its people, but Putin's plans must not become reality. At the same time, the minister clearly called Crimea a Ukrainian territory.

As reported, the German leadership provides huge financial, humanitarian, and security support to Ukraine although the government is often accused of delaying the arms supplies.

ol