Germany has agreed to allow heavy arms exports to Ukraine for the first time, amid weeks of growing pressure on Olaf Scholz’s government to do more to help Kyiv.
Christine Lambrecht, the defense minister, announced on Tuesday that Berlin would allow the export of anti-aircraft gun tanks known as Gepard – meaning Cheetah – to help Kyiv defend itself against the Russian invasion. “We are determined to join forces to help the Ukrainian people in this existential emergency,” Lambrecht said.
She revealed the decision of the US-sponsored defense talks at Rammstein Air Force Base in West Germany, which were organized to support support for Ukraine and coordinate arms supplies. Representatives of more than 40 countries are attending the talks.
Lloyd Austin, the US Secretary of Defense, said Western countries would “continue to move heaven and earth” to supply Ukraine with weapons of defense.
Scholz, the German chancellor, has for weeks opposed calls for the country to supply heavy weapons such as tanks and armored personnel carriers to Ukraine, saying such a move could spark a direct military confrontation between NATO and Russia that could lead to nuclear war.
But he faces growing pressure to change course in recent days as Russia launches another major offensive in Ukraine’s eastern border region, Donbass.
German Defense Minister Christine Lambrecht addresses the media at Rammstein Air Force Base in West Germany on Tuesday © Kai Pfaffenbach / Reuters
Ukraine pleads with the West to provide more long-range weapons. General Mark Millie, chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, said in Rammstein that the coming weeks were “critical”. “The weather is not on Ukraine’s side,” he said. “The outcome of this battle, right here today, depends on the people in this room.
Germany’s position on arms supplies to Ukraine has changed progressively since the Russian invasion began on February 24. Initially, it adhered to Berlin’s long-standing policy of not exporting weapons to conflict zones. But he changed course within days, agreeing to supply Ukraine with anti-tank and anti-aircraft weapons.
Earlier this month, Scholz said Germany would also compensate Eastern European countries that sent Soviet weapons to Ukraine with Western sets of their own stockpiles.
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One of the main obstacles preventing Germany from sending military equipment to Ukraine has been the dire condition of the Bundeswehr, which has been plagued by years of spending cuts and almost no spare equipment. Shortly after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Scholz announced a 100 billion-euro fund to modernize Germany’s armed forces.
About 50 Gepard, which will be delivered to Kyiv, were decommissioned by the Bundeswehr a few years ago and returned to their manufacturer Krauss-Maffei Wegmann. The company plans to repair the weapons and send them directly to Ukraine.
The system was developed in the 1960s and was first introduced in the 1970s. It was the cornerstone of the Bundeswehr’s air defenses until it was shut down in 2010. The machine, which has its own radar system, can be used to hit both air and ground targets.
Lambrecht said Germany is also training Ukrainian troops to use Western artillery systems, such as the 2000 PzH tank howitzer sent to Ukraine from the Netherlands.
In addition, Berlin acted under a scheme known as “Ukraine orders and Germany pays”, according to which Kyiv requested weapons from a list provided by German arms manufacturers, and Berlin provided the funds, she said.
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