Merz: Ukraine Security Guarantees Will Exclude Russia
Friedrich Merz says Ukraine and its allies will shape security guarantees without Russia, as Germany backs air defense and Europe plans missile cooperation.
Following the Paris summit of the «coalition of the willing» German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said security guarantees for Ukraine would be discussed by Kiev and its allies without Russia taking part.
Merz did not specify what role Germany would assume in the process. He said the format of Berlin’s participation would have to be decided jointly by the German government and the Bundestag.
The chancellor also said Germany was already contributing to the reinforcement of Ukraine’s air defense, but gave no details on the type or scale of the assistance.
At the meeting, leaders of nine European countries — Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom — agreed to form a coalition focused on missile defense.
French President Emmanuel Macron also said Ukraine would receive new air defense missiles in the coming weeks. The package includes the first batch of next-generation SAMP-T batteries, as well as 16 upgraded Rafale fighter jets for Kiev.