Russia-Ukraine war: Chancellor Scholz says Germany must be ready for potential escalation

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said his country must be prepared for a potential escalation of the ongoing war in Ukraine. Scholz, however, added that his recent visit to China was worth it to make it clear that nuclear weapons must not be used in the nearly nine-month war.

Speaking at a conference in Berlin by the Sueddeutsche Zeitung newspaper Tuesday, Scholz said the country must be prepared in case an escalation takes place in the war. Scholz also cited the over $100 billion defense fund that was announced shortly after Russia invaded Ukraine in February as a result of a lesson learned to build on Germany’s defense stocks.

“In view of the development of war and Russia’s visible and growing failures…we must be ready for an escalation,” said Scholz, adding that this escalation may involve the destruction of infrastructure.

Meanwhile, the British defense ministry said in its daily intelligence update that Russia has likely launched a significant amount of Iranian-made unmanned aerial vehicles in Ukraine since September. The ministry also said that it was likely that Russia has nearly exhausted its current stock of Iranian-made weapons and is set to seek to resupply its stock.

“Russia has largely used these weapons against tactical military targets and the Ukrainian electricity grid. However, recently Russian commanders likely also wanted Iranian-sourced UAVs to prioritize medical facilities as targets of opportunity and strike them with guided munitions if identified,” tweeted the ministry.

“Russia likely conceived of the UAV campaign to make up for its severe shortage of cruise missiles, but the approach has had limited success. Most UAVs launched have been neutralized,” said the ministry.

In his nightly video address on Tuesday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that special shelters, also known as “invincibility centers” will be set up across the country to provide heat, water, electricity, internet, mobile phone connections, and pharmacy, free of charge and will be available around the clock.

This comes amidst continued bombardment by Russian forces on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure. Zelenskyy said that should Russian strikes on energy infrastructure happen again, the centers would take into effect.

Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said that around 8,500 power generator sets are being imported to the country daily.