Germany to join Ukraine exercise, in apparent U-turn

Germany will take part in the first military exercise of the Coalition of the Willing, a group formed to support Ukraine, a government spokesman announced on Wednesday, in an apparent U-turn.

"Germany will take part in this exercise. The government is examining what form this participation will take," spokesman Stefan Kornelius told dpa. The issue would be discussed at a meeting of the Franco-German security and defence council on Friday, he added.

On Tuesday, government sources in Berlin had said the "small-scale command-post exercise" would take place without German participation. It was not immediately clear what prompted the apparent change of heart. 

The coalition of around 35 supporters of Ukraine had unexpectedly agreed at a meeting in Paris on Monday to carry out the first drills of the multinational Ukraine force, as proposed by France. 

The coalition is being established to support Ukraine in the event of a ceasefire with Russia. The first manoeuvres are to take place in Poland, neighbouring Ukraine.

It is to be a small-scale exercise, designed to test command structures and decision-making processes. On Tuesday, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk named France and the UK, alongside Poland, as participating states.

The decision to form the multinational force under European leadership to underpin a possible ceasefire was taken in December at a Ukraine summit in Berlin. On Monday, French President Emmanuel Macron said the force was already operational.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz had merely stated that the Coalition of the Willing was ready to play an "important role" in providing security guarantees for Ukraine following a ceasefire, in close cooperation with the United States.

The German government and parliament would decide on the "nature and scope of Germany's contribution," Merz added.