Reportedly there are German-made infantry fighting vehicles in Russia's Kursk region. Has this provoked any backlash in Germany?

Question

Reportedly German-made Marder IVFs have been spotted in Russia's Kursk region [being targeted by Russian forces].

Has this provoked any backlash in Germany, like parliamentary inquiries etc., given Germany's more reluctant approach toward arming the Ukrainians with weapons that can reach Russia (like cruise missiles)?

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Someone was asking in comments for more motivation for the Q. Only last year [and a half ago] Time was writing:

Berlin’s reluctance to heed Ukrainian calls for battle tanks demonstrates the limits of Zeitenwende and Germany’s deep divisions over what kind of military power it should be, if indeed it ought to be one at all. But those within the German government offer a different interpretation: one not of indecision, but prudence, and a desire to be seen as keeping pace with allies rather than leading them.

“There are very good purely military reasons to send these kinds of weapons to Ukraine, for sure,” says Nils Schmid, the foreign policy spokesperson for Scholz’s Social Democrats in the German Bundestag. But if “something turns ugly and if, against all odds and all expectations, the war spreads, the responsibility will fall fully on the shoulders of Scholz and [U.S. President Joe] Biden and [French President Emmanuel] Macron.”

Also Euronews says that even the Biden administration only gave Ukraine permission to use American weapons in Russia this spring "for the limited purpose of defending Kharkiv". And this Kursk incursion is about 200km away from there. (Typically, Germany didn't veer too much from the US position.)

Answer 1

Probably the most relevant politician who commented negatively on this situation is Sahra Wagenknecht. She was voted into the parliament as a member of Die Linke, which is a politically isolated opposition party which got 5% of the seats in the last election. She was the leader of its parliamentary faction until 2019, but she has recently formed her own party, currently representing 1.3% of seats in parliament.

She called the usage of German weapons on Russian territory "crossing a red line" and urged that the chancellor should "call the Ukrainian president and demand that no German weapons shall be used during incursions on Russian territory". Her argument is that the use of foreign weapons would increase the danger of an escalation of the war to other European countries. (German source).

It should be noted, though, that Wagenknecht was always decidedly pro-Russian throughout her whole political career. She spoke out against any form of military aid for Ukraine or economic sanctions against Russia since the start of the Russian invasion. So her criticism is not surprising.

Answer 2

Not backlash, but a more official position from Germany's parliament:

https://www.tagesschau.de/inland/innenpolitik/ukraine-russland-marder-100.html (in German)

The Chairman of the Defense Committee in the Bundestag, Marcus Faber, sees no problem in the process: "With the handover to Ukraine, they are Ukrainian weapons," the FDP politician told the Funke Mediengruppe newspapers. This applies "to all material", including the Leopard 2 main battle tank.

"With the Russian attack on Ukraine, the territory of both states is a war zone," he explained his position. "The use of weapons is subject to the provisions of international law."

Translated with DeepL.com (free version)

From my very personal bubble, people are generally happy about the latest developments. But I don't think there are any official polls yet.

Answer 3

As of 2024-AUG-09:

There are people, especially but not exclusively in the East of Germany, calling for a restriction of aid to Ukraine. As far as I can tell, the reasoning is the expense and budgetary concerns (e.g. Kretschmer, CDU) or a general aversion to an arms race (e.g. Mützenich, SPD). Others appear to be simply paid by Moscow (e.g. Bystron, AfD).

You will find people and opinions on just about any issue on the web, but the use of vehicles which had been delivered months ago does not seem to have drawn any unusual response so far.