The Diplomat
The Minister of Defense, Margarita Robles, assured yesterday that, for the moment, “there are no plans” to send heavy weapons to Ukraine, although “nothing can ever be ruled out”. She also admitted that the possibility of Spain reopening its Embassy in Kiev is “a scenario that is on the table”.
“At the moment there are no plans to send heavy weapons, but Spain’s solidarity with the Ukrainian people is total and we will continue with that support,” the minister said during an interview on Telecinco’s El programa de Ana Rosa.
Spain has so far sent a total of twelve aircraft loaded with light weapons for the Ukrainian forces. The President of Ukraine, Volodymir Zelenski, has asked Western countries to send heavy weapons, a possibility that the United States and Germany have already begun to consider. In this regard, according to Robles, “nothing can ever be ruled out”, but Spain has already “sent light weaponry, easily usable, to exercise legitimate self-defense”, because heavy weaponry, such as battle tanks, “requires years of training and preparation”. “Ukraine is prepared for the use of material from the former Soviet Union and the material is Spain is different”, she warned.
On the other hand, Margarita Robles stated that many people have started to return to Kiev, which could be interpreted as a “final triumph” over Vladimir Putin’s Russian forces. Therefore, she assured, the possibility of reopening the Spanish Embassy in Ukraine is “a scenario that is on the table” which, in any case, Spain would decide in coordination with the rest of the partners of the European Union and NATO allies.
Regarding the evolution of the conflict, Margarita Robles affirmed that Putin expected “a military ride”, but “it has turned against him” because of the “heroic resistance” of the Ukrainian people and Russia’s “bad military planning”. However, she warned, the Russian president has already made it clear that he will not allow a defeat and will concentrate his offensive on the Donbass in the east, which could translate into increased atrocities in Ukraine.
