Germany wants to support Ukraine in the defensive war against Russia with anti-aircraft tanks. The German federal government allows delivery of Gepard tanks from industry stocks. Weapons manufacturer Krauss-Maffei Wegmann (KMW) gets the green light to sell technically refurbished anti-aircraft tanks from old Bundeswehr stockpiles. Krauss-Maffei Wegmann has 50 air defense-type tanks available from the disbanded army of the Bundeswehr. The cheetah can also be used in combat against ground targets.
The German army retired Gepard tanks about ten years ago. According to information from government circles to AFP, the tanks can be delivered directly from KMW to Ukraine, no ring exchange agreements are planned. The costs can be borne by Germany or NATO.
Ammunition shortage report
As the newspaper “Bild” (Wednesday edition) reported from government circles, manufacturer KMW currently has only about 23,000 rounds of ammunition in stock for the Cheetah’s main weapons system. As a result, the tank’s two main heavy weapons need about 1,100 rounds per minute. According to “Bild”, the Ministry of Defense and KMW are now looking for more ammunition for the cheetah. According to the paper, security circles also assume that the cheetah gunner’s extensive basic training will take six weeks.
Germany delivers weapons to Ukraine for the first time
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Defense Minister Christine Lambrecht (both from the SPD) were heavily criticized for weeks over their line in the Ukraine war. At a meeting at the US arms base in Ramstein, Rhineland-Palatinate, Lambrecht announced a rollback: heavy weapons will be delivered to Ukraine for the first time.
Lambrecht also announced in Ramstein that Ukrainian soldiers would be trained. “The best guarantee of security for Ukraine is a well-trained and well-equipped armed forces,” Lambrecht said. And: “We are a reliable partner on the Ukraine side – along with our allies,” she said after the conference with participants from about 40 nations.
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Ukraine War: What Resources Does the West Have?
Lambrecht rejects criticism
Lambrecht rejected the charge of hesitant German support for Ukraine. “We always make our decisions in consultation with the Allies,” she said. “As soon as it became clear that others would deliver certain systems, we would support them, we would also deliver, that’s our way, not German solo efforts.” ‘ she continued. “If Ukraine urgently needs such anti-aircraft systems now, we are ready to support them.”
The aim of the consultations is “to deliver quickly now, but also to ensure that the Ukrainian army is able to defend itself and the population in the medium and long term,” Lambrecht said. “We will continue to explore all possibilities on how we can continue to support Ukraine.” It is about expressing solidarity in a very concrete way. “We Germans are ready for this, we were ready for this and we will continue to be in the future.”
US welcomes delivery of German tanks
US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin welcomed Germany’s announcement. Germany is “a great friend and ally” of the United States, Austin told a news conference. The transfer of the 50 Gepard anti-aircraft tanks is a “significant” step that will bring important additional capabilities to Ukraine. The US and its allies stand together to support Ukraine in the face of Russia’s war of aggression, Austin said.
AP/Michael Probst US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin
Asked whether Germany should do more to provide Ukraine with military support, Austin said the decision rests solely with Germany as a sovereign state. So he doesn’t want to speculate. Referring to Lambrecht, he said that “judging from everything I’ve seen in my conversations with the secretary of defence”, it’s clear that she is focused on doing whatever she can to support Ukraine, and that will continue to happen.
US announces contact group
“We are here to help Ukraine win the battle against Russia’s unfair invasion and build Ukraine’s defenses for the challenges of tomorrow,” Austin said at the opening of the meeting. The US also announced a monthly contact group to better coordinate Ukraine’s defense capabilities.
“To ensure that we continue to build on our progress, we will extend this forum beyond today,” Austin said. “The Contact Group will become a vehicle to coordinate our support and focus on winning today’s fight and the fights to come,” Austin said. Monthly meetings can be face-to-face, virtual or in a mixed format.
Poland dissatisfied
Polish Deputy Foreign Minister Szymon Szynkowski vel Sek welcomed the German decision to supply tanks, but at the same time considered it insufficient. Approving the export of Cheetah anti-aircraft tanks by the defense industry could only be a first step, he said Tuesday before a meeting between Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki and Scholz in Berlin. “Cheetah tanks are not enough. We do more than Germany, other countries do more. The statistics also show this.”
AP/Michael Probst At a conference at the US base in Ramstein, Germany, 40 states discussed more arms deliveries to Ukraine
Moscow notice
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov had already made it clear that he considered NATO arms deliveries to Ukraine to be legitimate targets for his country. In an interview with Russian television, he warned that the threat of a third world war was “serious, it is real, it must not be underestimated”. Lavrov accused the United States and Britain of delaying negotiations with Ukraine.
Latvia and Lithuania have rejected Lavrov’s threat of an escalation in the Ukraine war. “If Russia threatens World War III, then that is a clear sign that Ukraine is succeeding,” Foreign Minister Edgars Rinkevics wrote on Twitter. In neighboring Lithuania, President Gitanas Nauseda said: “We must not be intimidated by this rhetoric, which has already become commonplace,” he said during a visit to Klaipeda. “They are simply using every reasonable and inappropriate opportunity to try to stop Western countries from helping Ukraine.”
The US Department of Defense criticized Lavrov’s warning of a nuclear war as escalating. Any talk about the possible use of nuclear weapons is “very dangerous and useless,” Austin said. The United States has not changed the readiness of its nuclear deterrent, ministry spokesman John Kirby told CNN. The Russian army and the entire state have weakened since the beginning of the war. “We want Russia to no longer be able to threaten its neighbors in the future,” he said.
Debate over arms deliveries in the Bundestag
The debate over German arms deliveries to Ukraine is also occupying the Bundestag this week. The aim is to reach an agreement on arms deliveries and on funding the Bundeswehr. The leader of the SPD parliamentary group, Rolf Mützenich, offered the CDU/CSU parliamentary group talks on a joint Bundestag motion. CDU/CSU parliamentary group leader Friedrich Merz spoke out in favor of negotiations with the traffic light groups to bring together the two existing requests for arms delivery and aid to Ukraine. The topics are also due to be discussed in the coalition committee on Tuesday night.