[Source/Observation Network by Shao Yun]

German Chancellor Merz recently made a statement that "countries are no longer restricting the range of weapons aid to Ukraine," which has triggered numerous speculations. According to Russia Today (RT) on the 29th, Chairman of the Russian State Duma Defense Committee and former Deputy Minister of Defense Andrei Kartapolov warned that if Ukraine uses the "Taurus" missiles provided by Germany to attack Russian depth targets, Russia is also prepared to authorize direct strikes on German territory.

The report stated that Kartapolov said in an interview with Russian "Life.ru" website on the 28th: "We are ready for everything. We are prepared to intercept 'Taurus' missiles and strike their launch sites, operators, as well as the source of missile delivery (Berlin) when necessary."

The "Taurus" cruise missile has a range of up to 500 kilometers, which RT considers sufficient to strike deep targets within Russia, including the capital Moscow.

However, Kartapolov emphasized that the Ukrainian military does not have the technical capability to operate such high-precision weapons independently. He claimed that Ukrainian military personnel would need assistance from Western military experts to operate other long-range weapon systems previously delivered by Western countries to Ukraine, such as the US Army Tactical Missile System (ATACMS), the UK's Storm Shadow cruise missile, and France's SCALP cruise missile.

Screenshot of Kartapolov's interview with "Life.ru" website

Previously, Merz said in an interview with German media on the 26th that the weapons Germany and its allies provide to Ukraine are no longer limited by range. Although he did not specifically mention what kind of weapons were provided to Ukraine, given that Merz publicly expressed support for providing Germany's "Taurus" cruise missiles to Ukraine before assuming the position of Chancellor, public opinion believes that Merz's remarks may pave the way for this.

Merz's remarks also sparked controversy in Germany. SPD Vice Chancellor and Finance Minister Scholz denied any change in Germany's policy on supplying arms to Ukraine: "In terms of range, I want to say that there is no new agreement surpassing what the previous government did." Some German government officials told Reuters that Merz's remarks were "not a new policy, and the current government has never set any range limitations."

On the 28th, Merz and Ukrainian President Zelenskyy attended a joint press conference in Berlin. Merz said that as the beginning of a "new type of military-industrial cooperation," Germany will fund Ukraine to produce long-range weapons domestically. The German Ministry of Defense later confirmed that Germany and Ukraine had signed an agreement worth about $5.7 billion, with large quantities of long-range weapon systems expected to be produced and delivered to the Ukrainian military as early as this year. The first batch of equipment could be deployed within weeks.

The German Ministry of Defense did not reveal whether it would provide "Taurus" missiles to Ukraine. However, according to RT, Merz said in an interview on the 28th that delivering "Taurus" missiles was "possible." However, Merz also noted that the Ukrainian military would require "months of training" to effectively use these missiles.

In response to this development, Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov criticized Germany on the 28th for overstepping its boundaries. "Germany's direct involvement in this war is now obvious." He warned that Germany was "sliding down the same slope it has repeatedly fallen into in the past century - ultimately leading to its own collapse." "I hope there are still responsible politicians in this country who can make the right decisions to stop this madness."

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Original article: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7510206431468044815/

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