German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said Thursday that US plans to deploy long-range missiles in Germany are a “very good decision” because there is “an incredible accumulation of weapons in Russia that threatens European territory.”
“The US decision to deploy precision strike capabilities in Germany is a very good decision and fits in with all the decisions we have already made,” Scholz told reporters at the NATO summit in Washington.
Scholz said that this is an issue that was already addressed at the last security summit in Munich in February of this year and that is motivated by the increase in weapons that Russia has deployed in Europe since the beginning of the invasion of Ukraine.
“We have been grappling for a long time with the question of how we can guarantee a deterrence that secures our Alliance,” said Scholz, who insisted that this US deployment “fits exactly” with the strategies and agreements that Germany has deployed with other partners such as France and the United Kingdom.
“It is time to ensure peace in Europe,” stressed Scholz, who had previously highlighted the “success” of this summit. “It is about increasing our capabilities, increasing our strength, spending more on defence and organising a successful deterrence,” as well as continuing to support Ukraine, he said.
Before Scholz confirmed this deployment, which had already been announced jointly by Washington and Berlin, Russian authorities warned that there would be a “harsh” response to these plans.
“I hope that this does not happen, because then Russia’s response will be harsh. This is simply unacceptable,” said Russian Senate Speaker Valentina Matvienko, who said that Germany “has no right to have such weapons” according to the “post-war documents” signed.