A large majority of people in Germany support Chancellor Olaf Scholz's decision not to send Taurus cruise missiles to Ukraine, a new survey shows.
In a poll conducted by the opinion research institute YouGov on behalf of dpa, only 28% were in favour of providing the missiles, which have a range of 500 kilometres, for Ukraine's defence against Russia.
Some 58% are against the delivery of the weapon system. More than half of that 58%, a total of 31% of respondents, reject in principle any support for Ukraine with German weapons. Some 14% did not give an opinion.
The survey of 2,169 Germans who are eligible to vote was conducted from March 1 to March 5.
Behind Scholz's decision is the fear that Germany could become involved in the war if the cruise missiles hit Russian territory.
Scholz's position has struck a nerve with the population. According to YouGov surveys, opposition to delivering the Taurus missile platform has grown in recent weeks. At the beginning of February, 31% were still in favour and only 49% against when asked the same question.
However, the mood among people in Germany contradicts the prevailing opinion in the Bundestag.
In addition to the coalition parties of the Greens and the Free Democrats, the conservative opposition Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and their sister party the Christian Social Union (CSU), are also in favour of the delivery of the Taurus missiles.
Among voters, only Green Party supporters are overwhelmingly in favour of releasing the weapons system for the Ukrainian armed forces, 48% to 36%.
Among voters of the CDU/CSU, 38% in were in favour and 49% were against. In the business friendly Free Democrat Party (FDP) only 34% were in favour.
Germans also overwhelmingly sided with the chancellor's rejection of sending ground troops to Ukraine. Some 72% think it is right to rule out such a step once and for all, as Scholz has done. Only 16% think the German government should keep the option open.
"To put it bluntly: as German Chancellor, I will not be sending any soldiers from our Bundeswehr to Ukraine," he said in a video message last week.
Scholz was responding to French President Emmanuel Macron, who shortly beforehand had said he would not rule out deploying French soldiers.
Germans are divided on the question of the extent to which Ukraine should be supported with weapons.
About 43% say that too many weapons have been delivered to Ukraine since the Russian invasion two years ago. Another 43% say that the amount of arms aid is either just right (22%) or does not go far enough (21%).
Germany is Ukraine's second largest arms supplier after the US. Since the Russian invasion on February 24, 2022, €28 billion ($30 billion) worth of armaments have been delivered or firmly committed from Germany to the war zone.
