For Ukraine: German industry offers mortars instead of tanks
April 21, 2022, 6:50 pm
The weapons list for Kiev does not include heavy weapons such as tanks or artillery.
Direct from dpa news channel
Berlin (dpa) - The German government is preparing a first ring exchange for the delivery of heavy weapons to Ukraine.
According to information from the Deutsche Presse-Agentur on Thursday, NATO partner Slovenia is to hand over a larger number of its old battle tanks to Ukraine in exchange for the Marder infantry fighting vehicle and the Fuchs wheeled tank from Germany. Slovenia still has a Yugoslavian variant of the T-72 main battle tank, also used by Ukraine, in its inventory under the designation M-84. "The situation in Ukraine is coming to a dramatic head. And we must not allow Putin, Russia to win this war of aggression," said Defense Minister Christine Lambrecht (SPD). And, "It must now happen very, very quickly."
Timing of delivery still unclear
Whether and when German industry will supply heavy weapons to Ukraine, on the other hand, remains unclear. On a list of 210 offers worth 307 million euros from the end of March, there is only one offer that could be placed in this category: 12 mortars, 120 millimeter caliber. The battle tanks, heavy artillery or air defense systems demanded by Ukraine are not on the list.
Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) has been under pressure for days from his own coalition and from Ukraine. Patience is now also wearing thin among Eastern European allies. Poland's head of government, Mateusz Morawiecki, announced on Thursday that he wanted to talk to Scholz in order to change his position. He said he wanted to make it clear to him that this was a turning point in the history of Europe and the world. Ukrainians needed something with which to defend themselves, he said. "That is why it is necessary to give them ammunition and also heavy equipment. Here, Germany's ambiguous stance is certainly not helpful."
The chairwoman of the defense committee in the Bundestag, Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann, asked Scholz to personally report to the committee next Wednesday on arms deliveries. "The question of what contribution Germany, and in particular the Bundeswehr, can actually make in terms of arms deliveries is existential for the people in Ukraine," the invitation, obtained by Deutsche Presse-Agentur, reads. The FDP politician is a proponent of the delivery of heavy weapons.
Anti-tank weapons on industrial list
Scholz had made clear Tuesday that the Bundeswehr would not supply heavy weapons to Ukraine. Instead, the German government wants to finance the delivery of weapons and equipment from German industry to Ukraine. In this context, the chancellor spoke of a list of deliverable armaments. Among them, as before, are anti-tank weapons, air defense equipment, ammunition "and also what can be used in an artillery engagement."
Specifically, the list, obtained by dpa, includes 5150 anti-tank weapons with a range of up to 500 meters. In addition, the offerings include 18 small reconnaissance drones, 3000 night vision devices, more than 3000 small arms, 30 anti-drone rifles and armored vehicles. The largest share falls into the categories of reconnaissance equipment (approximately 162 million euros), personal protective equipment (approximately 79 million euros) and small arms (approximately 41 million euros). This year, the German government is making two billion euros of taxpayers' money available for defense aid abroad. Most of this is earmarked for Ukraine.
Lambrecht: The next two weeks are crucial
The second way to enable the delivery of heavy weapons to Ukraine is the ring swap: other countries deliver Soviet-style weapons to Ukraine and get replacements from Germany. The idea behind this: Ukraine's armed forces can handle the aging weapons without special training. They can therefore be deployed quickly.
According to Lambrecht, the operation should start in the next few days. "All military experts are sure that the next two weeks are decisive weeks in Ukraine's fight against Russia," the SPD politician said on n-tv. "And we have to support this fight so that it can be passed."
The T-72 weapon system, which dates back to the Soviet era, is already being used by the Ukrainian army. According to dpa information from government circles, Slovenia has also requested more modern equipment from Germany as compensation, including the German Leopard 2 main battle tank, the Boxer wheeled tank and the Puma infantry fighting vehicle, which is being introduced in the Bundeswehr as the successor to the Marder, which has been in use for 50 years.
Training of Ukrainian soldiers on self-propelled howitzer 2000
Lambrecht (SPD) also confirmed that Germany would train Ukrainian soldiers on the self-propelled howitzer 2000. "Because we have the know-how to train on it. That's one way to provide that support as well," she said.
According to earlier reports, the self-propelled howitzer 2000 is to be supplied to Ukraine by the Netherlands. Germany cannot do so because the "Bundeswehr is not so equipped," Lambrecht said, adding, "But where we can provide training, we will."
The Bundeswehr has about 120 self-propelled howitzers. Only six of them are deployed in Lithuania. The Netherlands has 54 of the artillery pieces, according to the Defense Ministry there, with 35 in use and 19 in storage.
Already delivered: 100,000 shells and 16 million rounds of ammunition
From Ukrainian government circles, dpa also learned which German weapons have arrived in Ukraine in the meantime: A good 2500 anti-aircraft missiles, 900 bazookas with 3000 rounds of ammunition, 100 machine guns and 15 bunker busters with 50 rockets. In addition, there are 100,000 hand grenades, 2000 mines, around 5300 explosive charges and more than 16 million rounds of ammunition of various calibers for small arms ranging from assault rifles to heavy machine guns.
The German government had decided to deliver weapons to the war zone two days after the Russian attack on Ukraine - breaking a taboo. Initially, the German government announced which weapons it was supplying, but for some time now it has no longer done so. Members of the Bundestag can now only obtain information about this from the Secret Protection Service.
Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) is to report personally on arms deliveries to Ukraine at the next meeting of the defense committee. "I would be very pleased if your schedule could make it possible for you to attend," reads a letter addressed to the chancellor from committee chairwoman Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann, which was obtained by Deutsche Presse-Agentur on Thursday. The drama of the war in Ukraine "increases day by day," the FDP politician writes.