MOSCOW, Aug 20 German Finance Minister Christian Lindner said in Sunday that he proposed to Bundestag deputies to budget five billion euros for annual military support for Ukraine.
«Next year, I proposed to the Bundestag deputies responsible for the budget, to plan five billion euros a year for military assistance to Ukraine,» Lindner said during an event held as part of the government's open day.
The Minister of Finance stressed that the decision on this issue will have to be taken by legislators.
According to Lindner, Germany is interested in supporting Ukraine for two reasons: firstly, further deterioration of the situation in Ukraine may lead to an even greater influx of refugees into the country; and secondly, because Ukraine allegedly fights for «peace and freedom» in Europe.
Earlier, Russia sent a note to NATO countries over arms supplies to Ukraine. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov noted that any cargo that contains weapons for Ukraine will become a legitimate target for Russia. The Foreign Ministry of the Russian Federation stated that the NATO countries are «playing with fire» by supplying weapons to Ukraine. The Kremlin stated that pumping Ukraine with weapons from the West does not contribute to the success of Russian-Ukrainian negotiations and will have a negative effect. Lavrov also stated that the US and NATO are directly involved in the conflict in Ukraine, including not only the supply of weapons, but also the training of personnel in the UK, Germany, Italy and other countries.