In Germany, intellectuals write to Scholz urging not to supply heavy weapons to Ukraine

Amid the relentless war in Eastern Europe, as many as thirty personalities from the field of culture and art, including German journalists, musicians and artists, have penned an open letter to German Chancellor Olaf Scholz with a clarion call not to supply heavy weapons to Ukraine. The signatories of the letter also include Martin Walser - one of the largest representatives of post-war German literature, writer and playwright. On Friday, the full content of the letter to the German Chancellor was published on the website of the German magazine EMMA. 

The signatories urged that heavy weaponry not be deployed to the Ukrainian military, as it could lead to a third world war. They also expressed their support for Scholz's attempts to keep the situation in Ukraine from escalating into a new global conflict. "We appreciate that until now, you (Scholz) have considered the risks so carefully: the risk of the war spreading within Ukraine; the risk of expansion across Europe; yes, the risk of a 3rd world war. We, therefore, hope that you will remember your original position and will not supply any more heavy weapons to Ukraine, either directly or indirectly," they wrote in the letter. They also urged the German Chancellor to make an all-out effort to reach a ceasefire in war-torn Ukraine. 

Signatories warn supplying weapons to Ukraine could make Germany a party to the conflict

At the same time, the letter's signatories emphasised that supplying Kyiv with more heavy weaponry could also make Germany a party to the conflict. As a result, if the situation worsens, Germany may be obligated to engage in a conflict under Article 5 of NATO's Collective Defense Treaty. According to the authors of the letter, this poses the risk of triggering a world war. "We also share the conviction that there is a fundamental political and moral duty not to back down from aggressive violence without resistance. But everything that can be derived from this has its limits in other imperatives of political ethics," the letter read. 

Bundestag members ask govt to increase military aid to Kyiv

The signatories of the letter also warned that the escalating armament might be the start of a global weapons race with disastrous effects. They further stated that it is critical to work toward global peace despite all the differences and the European approach of shared diversity is a model for this. Earlier on Thursday, a majority of Bundestag members voted in favour of a document urging the government to increase military aid to Kyiv while also denouncing violence in the country, the TASS news agency reported.

Image: AP