The German Government today announced a new and extensive military aid package to Ukraine worth more than 2.7 billion euros and which will include, among other equipment, air defense systems, armored combat vehicles and artillery.
Specifically, the statement released by the Ministry of Defense cites 18 wheeled howitzers, artillery ammunition, guided missiles for air defense systems and 4 IRIS-T SLM fire units and 12 IRIS-T SLS launchers.
This is the largest military aid package provided to date by Germany.
The package also includes additional main battle tanks and infantry fighting vehicles, namely 30 Leopoard 1 A5 and 20 Marder, more than 100 armored fighting vehicles and more than 200 reconnaissance drones.
“With this valuable contribution of urgently needed military equipment, we show once again that Germany takes its support seriously. We all wish a speedy end to this terrible war by Russia against the Ukrainian people and contrary to international law,” said the minister of Defense, Boris Pistorius.
As that end is not yet foreseeable, “Germany will provide all the help it can, for as long as it takes,” he said.
Charlemagne Prize for Zelensky
The equipment included in the package comes from the reserves of the industry or from industrial production, the statement specifies, which emphasizes that the application of these measures decided by the German Government has already begun.
This is the largest military aid package provided to date by Germany to support the Ukrainian armed forces since the start of the war in February last year, writes “Spiegel”.
According to information from the weekly, this package will be announced as a symbol of German solidarity in Ukraine in parallel to the delivery of the Charlemagne Prize this Sunday to the Ukrainian president, Volodimir Zelenski, whose attendance at the ceremony in Aachen, in western Germany, has not been officially confirmed.
