German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said that he currently sees no need to transfer long-range Taurus cruise missiles to Ukraine, given Kyiv’s technological development in conducting hostilities. This was reported by n-tv.
Before being elected Chancellor, Merz repeatedly advocated the transfer of long-range missiles to Ukraine. Kyiv also made such requests, but the German side refused to provide this weapon.
During his speech in parliament, Merz said that he currently sees no point in supplying Taurus to the Ukrainian army, since Ukraine produces long-range weapons on its own. He noted that Ukrainian long-range weapons are “much more effective than the relatively small number of Taurus cruise missiles that Germany could transfer.”
The Chancellor also explained why he had previously called for the transfer of these missiles to Kyiv. According to Merz, at the time he assumed that the Bundeswehr had a sufficient number of serviceable Taurus missiles that could be transferred to Ukraine.
Earlier, against the backdrop of increased Russian shelling in January 2026, co-chair of the German opposition Green party Franziska Brantner called on the government to strengthen Ukraine’s air defenses and transfer long-range Taurus missiles to Kyiv. At the same time, representatives of the government of Friedrich Merz avoided direct answers to questions about the possible transfer of long-range missiles to Ukraine.
At the end of May, the defense ministers of Germany and Ukraine signed an agreement in Berlin on financing long-range weapons of Ukrainian production.
