Federal Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock (Greens) justified the controversial export license for equipment and ammunition for Saudi Arabia. “There are no direct arms deliveries from Germany to Saudi Arabia – especially in view of the devastating human rights situation on site and in the region,” said Baerbock in an interview with the “Neue Osnabrücker Zeitung” (NOZ).
However, Germany is part of long-term joint defense projects with its closest European partners. “We can’t block these projects right now,” said Baerbock, adding: “Some decisions are hair-raisingly difficult.”
Despite an extensive export ban, the traffic light government recently gave the green light for the delivery of equipment and ammunition for fighter jets to Saudi Arabia worth 36 million euros. The basis is an exception. Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) visited the Gulf state last Saturday. The former federal government had largely stopped arms exports to Saudi Arabia, partly because of the kingdom’s involvement in the Yemen war and the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
After years of war, Saudi Arabia is now working for a ceasefire in Yemen, Baerbock told the NOZ. “Nevertheless, this terrible conflict is not over. At the same time, according to Baerbock, value-based foreign policy means “facing the dramatic world situation and not getting in the bush in the face of difficult debates”.
In “the worst security crisis in Europe for decades”, “reliability towards our allies in the EU and NATO has become even more important,” said Baerbock, explaining the green light for the joint project. In any case, a decision will be made very critically and conscientiously about rejection or approval. Only the approved deliveries would be reported to the Bundestag, and the few cases made it clear that the human rights situation and the fact that deliveries cannot be used for internal repression “play the central role in our foreign and also in our economic policy”. .
Baerbock added that an intensive social debate has been going on since February about how to deal with these dilemmas after the turn of the century. “And we will pour these principles into clear, strict criteria in an arms export control law,” said the Foreign Minister.
