The German Chancellor's hesitation in the battle tank debate caused outrage, incomprehension and ridicule in Great Britain.

Olaf Scholz is not only attacked in newspapers.

More and more scientists and politicians are also critical.

Over the weekend, the committee chairmen of the British House of Commons, including both government and opposition MPs, sent a letter to German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius.

In it, they asked him to clear the way for the delivery of Leopard main battle tanks to Ukraine.

The Ministry of Defense in Berlin did not initially respond to inquiries.

Jochen Buchsteiner

Political correspondent in London.

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The letter, excerpts of which were published by the British daily The Sun, begins politely: "We are aware of the very significant efforts Germany has made in support of Ukraine." They also understand "the historical reasons for the reluctance in the provision of German and German-made tanks”.

However, it goes on to say, "At this moment we urge you, with the utmost haste, to reconsider your position and allow Leopard-type main battle tanks - both German-owned and German-built - to be used in the coming days of the be made available to Ukraine”.

The move was coordinated by Labor MP Chris Bryant and has the signatures of all standing committee chairs and 37 other MPs.

He was also flanked by statements by British Foreign Secretary James Cleverly.

Although he avoided direct criticism of Berlin, he said he wanted "nothing more than that the Ukrainians be equipped with Leopard 2 main battle tanks".

The British government is so far the only one that has announced the delivery of its own main battle tanks.

These are 14 Challenger 2, with which a company can be equipped.

Unlike in Germany, there is no controversy over Ukraine policy in Britain.

Boris Johnson, who had already adopted a hard line before the war began, enjoyed the foreign policy approval of all major parties.

On Sunday, the prime minister, who resigned in autumn, made a surprise appearance in Kyiv, where he was received by President Volodymyr Zelenskyi.

After touring bombed neighborhoods, Johnson said, "This is the moment to step up efforts and give Ukrainians all the tools they need."

"Sustainable indecision"

According to surveys by the Kiel Institute for the World Economy, Great Britain ranks second behind the United States in terms of military aid, followed by Germany.

Both of Johnson's successors, Liz Truss and the incumbent Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, expressly committed to the continuity of Ukraine policy.

Nevertheless, Johnson's visit was not only met with goodwill in London.

Some in the conservative party saw this as an undermining of official foreign policy, while the opposition sensed a diversionary maneuver.

Shortly before Johnson's trip, it was revealed that he had received private credit coverage during his tenure.

The British press is unusually unanimous in assessing Olaf Scholz's actions.

In an editorial, the left-leaning newspaper The Guardian, which tends to be pro-Germany, accused Berlin of “persistent indecisiveness”, which “is not entirely wrongly read in Moscow as a European weakness”.

The conservative Telegraph, which has been attacking Berlin for months because of its Ukraine policy, cleared its letter-to-the-editor page for the topic.

A colonel wrote there that the government in Berlin was losing its reputation in NATO and had dealt the deathblow to the German armaments industry.

"Who else is going to buy their equipment if their use requires a permit?"

A retired admiral recommended that NATO partners who own Leopard "immediately deliver the tanks to Ukraine without authorization and make it clear to Germany that they will never buy arms there again, should there be any consequences."

A tweet by Oxford lecturer Timothy Garton-Ash, a historian of Eastern Europe, went viral, which he posted ahead of the Ukraine Contact Group meeting in Ramstein on Thursday.

So far, more than a million users have looked at a photo of the Chancellor with a sarcastic lexical entry placed next to it by Garton Ash.

The word "scholzing" was explained - with the words: "Communicating good intentions only to use/find/invent every conceivable reason to delay or prevent them".