BEIJING, February 15. /TASS/. A German lawmaker representing the Left Party in the German parliament, Sevim Dagdelen, warned that arms supplies to Ukraine increase the risk of a nuclear war.
"De facto, with its comprehensive military, intelligence and economic support for Ukraine, NATO is already a conflict party. Ukraine is being treated as a de facto member of NATO," she said in an interview with China’s Global Times.
"We are engaged in a dangerous game of one-upmanship on weapons supplies, in which, following the decision to supply battle tanks, people are already calling for deliveries of fighter jets, war ships and ballistic missiles or even nuclear weapons. To stop the war expanding into a Third World War and a nuclear Armageddon, we must break away from the military logic of escalation and find a diplomatic route out of the conflict," Dagdelen continued.
The lawmaker went on to say that protracting the conflict makes no sense.
"The effects of the war in Ukraine and the West's economic war against Russia are dramatic. This is especially true for the countries of the Global South, which are suffering greatly from the skyrocketing food and energy prices. In Europe and above all in Germany, the nonsensical economic war is tantamount to economic self-amputation", - she said.
Dagdalen criticized tank supplies to Ukraine before. In her opinion, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz should come up with diplomatic initiatives on ceasefire and peace-oriented negotiations.
On January 25, the German government confirmed that it would send Ukraine 14 Leopard 2 tanks and would issue permits for other countries to re-export these vehicles. According to German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius, the Leopard 2 tanks will be sent to Ukraine by the end of March. Other countries, in particular the UK, Norway, Poland, Slovakia, and France, have also announced their intention to provide Kiev with Western-made tanks. Kiev expects to receive up to 140 tanks from 12 countries in the first batch.