ISTANBUL

Ukraine and Europe will emerge victorious over Moscow's war on Kyiv "with Germany or without," Poland's prime minister said on Sunday.

"I try to weigh my words, but I'll say it bluntly. Ukraine and Europe will win this war – with or without Germany," Mateusz Morawiecki told the Polish Press Agency (PAP), adding that it was up to Berlin whether to join the mission of halting Russia or to look on passively, which he said would condemn them to being on the wrong side of history.

Morawiecki's comments came after a meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group meeting at the Ramstein Air Base in Germany on Friday, where Kyiv's allies pledged further military support to the embattled country but failed to iron out divisions on sending battle tanks.

"Almost a year has passed since the outbreak of war ... Evidence of the Russian army's war crimes can be seen on television and on YouTube. What more does Germany need to open its eyes and start to act in line with the potential of the German state," he asserted, calling Germany's position "unacceptable."

Morawiecki stressed that Germany did not have to give all its resources, as just a small percentage would be progress, adding that Berlin "should not weaken or sabotage the activities of other countries."

He also said Poland was working closely with the US and built a coalition of European states to support Ukraine, but that when things had started to go better in terms of heavy weapons for Ukraine, "Germany stepped in and raised doubts."

"The enemy is in the east and we're wasting time on discussions that yield nothing good," Morawiecki said, adding that Germany had fallen into a trap of its own making through years of seeking closer ties with Moscow.

Pressure has been mounting on Germany to provide Ukraine with Leopard 2 battle tanks, but Berlin has so far steered clear of any commitment with Defense Minister Boris Pistorius noting the country was trying to balance "all the pros and cons" of such deliveries.

Certain countries, including Poland and Finland, have promised to send their German-made Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine, but require Berlin's permission to do so.