According to a YouGov poll commissioned by Germany’s dpa news agency, more than half of Germans oppose Ukraine joining NATO.
According to the news agency, 54% of those polled were opposed to the idea.
Only 27% of those polled indicated they would agree to grant Kiev the possibility of joining the US-led military alliance.
In April, Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky stated that if Kiev does not receive a “well-deserved invitation” to join NATO, most Europeans will not understand. According to dpa, the Ukrainian president will now attend a NATO summit in Lithuania in July.
According to a YouGov poll, the majority of Germans prefer that Kiev begin dialogue with Moscow. According to the poll, 55% of respondents advocated for talks between Russia and Ukraine to settle the crisis. Only 28% were opposed.
The poll comes as Berlin announces yet another big arms deal for Ukraine. The new arms delivery is expected to cost more than €2.7 billion ($2.95 billion), and will include four German-made ground-based IRIS-T air-defense systems, which the German Armed Forces do not yet have, as well as 30 Leopard 1 battle tanks, 20 infantry fighting vehicles, 100 armored personnel carriers, 18 wheeled self-propelled artillery systems, and 200 reconnaissance drones.
“With this valuable contribution of desperately needed military equipment, we demonstrate once again that Germany is serious about its support,” said Defense Minister Boris Pistorius on Saturday. He did not specify when the armaments will be sent to Ukraine.
Johann Wadephul, deputy head of the Conservative Union (CDU/CSU) parliamentary caucus, has urged Berlin to allow Ukrainians to use German-made weaponry against targets within Russia. “Neither under international law nor politically, there is any reason why Ukraine shouldn’t be allowed to attack targets in Russia,” he told Tagesspiegel.
Meanwhile, the German public has been skeptical of Kiev’s enormous military support throughout the crisis. According to a survey conducted in February, nearly two-thirds of Germans polled opposed giving Kiev with fighter jets. According to a YouGov poll conducted in December 2022, 45% of respondents were opposed to sending German Leopard 2 battle tanks to Ukraine.
A number of German celebrities and public personalities also wrote two open letters to Chancellor Olaf Scholz, urging Berlin to halt delivering armaments to Ukraine and instead “do everything” to negotiate a ceasefire “as soon as possible” and find a “compromise that both sides can accept.”
Russia has consistently warned that arming Ukraine will simply prolong the suffering and increase the possibility of further escalation of hostilities, potentially leading to a direct conflict between Moscow and NATO. It also stated that it is open to a peaceful resolution of the issue as long as its objectives are met and its interests are protected.
