German Defense Minister Christina Lambrecht said that the funds that the German Armed Forces can transfer to Ukraine as part of military aid are running out.
“We can’t give much anymore [из запасов] Bundeswehr, I will say this very clearly, and my colleague [министр обороны Украины] he knows that too
– Lambrecht said and assured that Berlin would continue to support Kiev.
The head of the German Defense Ministry said he had “a very reliable and constructive relationship” with his Ukrainian counterpart, Alexei Reznikov. Lambrecht also recalled that Berlin sent some of the Panzerhaubitze 2000 self-propelled howitzers to Kiev.
At the same time, at the beginning of the month, the head of the German military department reported that the FRG will not be able to transfer the Fuchs armored personnel carrier to Ukraine due to the need to preserve the defense capability of the Bundeswehr.
What did Germany send to Ukraine?
On June 22, the German government published a complete list of weapons for the Ukrainian army.
The list included seven Panzerhaubitze 2000 self-propelled howitzers and spare parts for them, 13 M113 armored personnel carriers, 40 reconnaissance aircraft, 30 Gepard self-propelled anti-aircraft guns, an IRIS-T air defense system and three MARS multiple launch rocket systems. with ammunition. There were 38 positions in the list of weapons and supplies already delivered, and another 25 positions in the planned list.
According to the DPA agency, the Gepard facilities will be transferred to Kiev in July. It is assumed that the first batch will include 15 anti-aircraft installations and about 60 thousand ammunition.
On June 14, Lambrecht reported that the Ukrainian army had finished learning how to use German howitzers, after which the weapons would be sent to Ukraine.
In Kiev, Berlin was repeatedly criticized for the slowness of the arms procurement process and for insufficient assistance.
Problems with the delivery of weapons
The Wall Street Journal claims that Ukraine is having problems with the delivery of Western weapons to the troops.
According to the newspaper, it is a “logistical nightmare” to transfer it to the Ukrainian Armed Forces, as Western countries supply incompatible and piecemeal weapons. In particular, this problem concerns artillery – Kyiv receives various artillery installations produced by different countries, which, despite the standardization of NATO weapons, differ significantly from each other and provide different standards of service. This requires separate training of military personnel for each type of weapon.
Consumables and spare parts for installations are also not interchangeable.
In addition, the weight of some artillery systems significantly exceeds the weight of Soviet-made equipment to which Ukrainian military personnel are accustomed. For example, the Panzerhaubitze 2000 self-propelled howitzer weighs about 57 tons, and some bridges in Ukraine are not designed for such a load, which complicates logistics.
Shells of various calibers
Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council Secretary Oleksiy Danilov said that while Europe was running out of Soviet-style shells, Ukraine switched to NATO-caliber shells.
“A large number of bullets are used daily. 152 and 122 caliber shells are about to run out in general in Europe, it goes without saying that they are already out, ”said Danilov. According to him, now the Ukrainian army is switching to NATO standards.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba previously said that his country will continue to resist Russia even if the West stops supplying weapons to Kiev.
Kuleba said, “If we don’t have weapons, okay then we will fight with the oars, but we will defend ourselves because this war is a war for our existence.”
According to him, the sooner Kyiv takes up arms, the more help there will be for the country. The minister believes that many people will die if he is sent later.
Testing new weapons
The head of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine said that the country is ready to test new weapons from Western partners in combat operations on its territory and share with them all the knowledge and experience.
“We are interested in testing modern systems in the fight against the enemy, and we invite weapons manufacturers to test their new products here,” Reznikov said.
He noted that one of the samples of weapons tested by the Ukrainian army was the Polish Krab artillery system.
“For our partners in Poland, the USA, France, Germany or Turkish partners, this is a good chance to test their equipment,” Reznikov added.
will have to adjust the production
Katie Worden, head of the largest American defense company Northrop Grumman, urged authorities to signal the necessary weapons for Kyiv, as current stockpiles may not be enough.
I cannot say that our ammunition stock is running out, but if the US authorities expect that we will produce as much for Ukraine’s needs as we are currently producing, then the company will not have sufficient production capacity. It was fully replenished to order the state defense for the creation of reserves of combat materials, ”said Worden by the Financial Times.
He explained that due to logistical problems and the search for components, the timing of orders for weapons production has increased by two to three times. According to the FT, it could take years for the company to purchase parts and assemble weapons.
Northrop Grumman derives 80% of its annual revenue from orders from the Pentagon. The company produces Bushmaster armored personnel carriers and RQ-4 Global Hawk reconnaissance aircraft.
Another Pentagon supplier, Raytheon, has previously announced that it will take time to replenish the stocks of Stinger MANPADS supplied to Ukraine in large quantities.
The Financial Times states that the entire industry is facing component shortages due to disruption of global supply chains. The situation is particularly difficult with electronic components and microchips.
At the same time, Rebecca Koffler, a former intelligence officer of the US Department of Defense, believes that no American weapons will help Ukraine defeat Russia.
“There is not enough money or weapons for Ukraine to win, because the Russian army is incomparably stronger than the Ukrainian army,” he said.
Koffler claims that the US has already allocated $54 billion in aid to Ukraine, but this has not yielded results.
Source: Gazeta
