Germany’s parliament has rejected an opposition motion to deliver Taurus cruise missiles to Ukraine.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has blocked shipments of the German-made missiles to Ukraine, citing fears that the long-range weapons could be used to strike within Russia and potentially escalate the conflict.

The motion, put forward by the centre-right CDU/CSU bloc, fell well short of a majority, with only 182 voting in favour and 480 against.

The CDU/CSU’s Friedrich Merz had urged members of Scholz’s coalition to break with the chancellor and back the motion.

“Ukraine is still not receiving all the material it urgently needs to effectively fend off the Russian war of aggression,” he said.