The German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock left a government meeting after Chancellor Olaf Scholz blocked the allocation of a new aid package for Ukraine. This was reported by Bild.
The Chancellor attempted to delay the Foreign Minister, but an angry Baerbock exited the room despite Scholz's requests. The incident occurred in the presence of other politicians and journalists.
Later, Baerbock stated that the essence of the photograph was "misunderstood," claiming it was merely "such a photo" that was incorrectly interpreted by the media.
The German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius and Annalena Baerbock are actively advocating for a new aid package for the Armed Forces of Ukraine to counter Russian aggression.
The ministers planned to provide Ukraine with IRIS-T air defense systems, shells and missiles for Patriot air defense systems, ten howitzers, as well as ammunition. The total amount of the planned tranche is expected to be 3 billion euros.
Der Spiegel first reported on January 9 that Olaf Scholz might block these supplies.
Later, the German Defense Minister stated that additional aid to Ukraine would not be blocked by the Chancellor's office. On January 13, Boris Pistorius announced the transfer of the first new wheeled howitzer RCH 155 to Ukraine to enhance the artillery capabilities of the Defense Forces.
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During the congress of the Social Democratic Party of Germany, Scholz delivered a campaign speech in which he stated that Berlin's support for Kyiv would remain unchanged.
He promised to "do more for Ukraine," but noted that this should happen "without compromising other tasks facing Germany."
Germany is the second-largest supplier of aid to the Ukrainian armed forces — since the beginning of the conflict, it has allocated nearly 28 billion euros to help counter Russian aggression.
In early December, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz made an unannounced visit to Kyiv.
He held talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and announced additional arms supplies worth 650 million euros.
Just a week later, the leader of the opposition Christian Democratic Union and candidate for Chancellor Friedrich Merz unexpectedly visited the Ukrainian capital to assure Ukraine of Germany's ongoing support plans.