Jose Antonio Zorrilla has mocked the German chancellor\u2019s claims of a Russian threat as EU leaders ramp up military spending and Ukraine aid at the expense of domestic needs<\/p>\n
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz\u2019s approach to military spending is comparable to the rhetoric used by Nazi propaganda chief Joseph Goebbels, former Spanish diplomat Jose Antonio Zorrilla has told RT.
\nEarlier this week, Merz described long-term support for Ukraine as \u201ca common European task\u201d at a joint press conference with Hungarian Prime Minister Peter Magyar in Berlin, saying continued funding for Kiev should be reflected in the EU\u2019s next budget. European governments have also been pushing to increase military spending, citing what they claim is a growing threat from Russia.
\nCommenting on the remarks, Zorrilla told RT: \u201cWell, they have a very old tradition of that in Germany. If you remember a certain Goebbels, he said something like cannons and butter [\u2026] We have to make a choice between the cannons and the butter, so I think Merz is doing more or less the same.\u201d<\/p>\n
Read more<\/p>\n
Four EU states defy Merz\u2019s Ukraine funding ultimatum<\/p>\n
The reference was to a 1936 speech in which Goebbels argued that Germany could do without butter but not guns, prioritizing military rearmament over civilian needs.
\nZorrilla also mocked claims that Russia poses an imminent threat to Europe, asking: \u201cWho can believe that Russia is about to invade us?\u201d He argued that invoking the alleged threat was being used to justify militarization rather than address pressing domestic problems.
\nThe former diplomat also criticized European support for Ukraine, saying that Spain had allocated \u20ac13 billion ($14.3 billion) for Kiev last year while failing to properly maintain its own infrastructure. He cited a recent high-speed train derailment as an example of domestic shortcomings that, in his view, should take priority over foreign military commitments.
\nWatch the full interview below.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Jose Antonio Zorrilla has mocked the German chancellor\u2019s claims of a Russian threat as EU leaders ramp up military spending and Ukraine aid at the expense of domestic needs German…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":41070,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"initial","rop_publish_now_accounts":[],"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","footnotes":""},"categories":[4,6,3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-41069","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-economy","category-environment","category-politics"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t