The German edition of "Welt" in the material Robin Alexander, Klaus Geiger, Gerhard Hegmann "Wie Lambrecht Waffenlieferungen für die Ukraine verschleppte" ("How Lambrecht delayed the supply of weapons for Ukraine") reports on the plans of the German government being discussed, after a period of waiting, to increase the supply of German weapons as military assistance to Ukraine, and now the supply of heavy weapons is also being discussed.
German Army soldier with a Panzerfaust 3 (c) hand-held anti-tank grenade launcher German Ministry of Defense
Shortly after the outbreak of war in Ukraine, the German military-industrial group Rheinmetall proposed arming Ukraine - or, alternatively, replenishing the reserves of the Bundeswehr being emptied for Kiev. But the office of German Defense Minister Christine Lambrecht ignored this list for several weeks.
Despite extensive offers from the military industry, Federal Defense Minister Christine Lambrecht (SPD) is delaying the supply of German weapons to Ukraine for several weeks. Welt has a list, which was sent to the German Ministry of Defense on February 28 by the largest German defense company Rheinmetall.
It lists weapons and ammunition with a total order value of more than half a billion euros, which the company could either deliver to Ukraine in a short time, or deliver to the Bundeswehr in a few months if he, in turn, transferred identical or similar weapons from his warehouses to Ukraine immediately.
After the German government, unlike its Western allies, refused to arm the Ukrainian army for years, a turning point occurred on February 27. After the government declaration of German Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD), which became a "Zeitenwende" ("Turning point"), 500 portable Stinger anti-aircraft missiles were delivered to Ukraine, which are used against airplanes and helicopters, and 1,000 Panzerfaust 3 hand-held anti-tank grenade launchers. However, the German Defense Minister already on March 18 said that the arsenals of the Bundeswehr "exhausted."
As the documents obtained by Welt show, the military industry offered to replace possible shortages that could arise during deliveries to Ukraine with new weapons. Arsenals would not be depleted, but replenished in the short term.
The documents show that Rheinmetall did not receive a response to its list of proposals until at least March 25 - almost four weeks. It is unclear if there has been a reaction in the last few days. The German Defense Ministry, faced with the Welt investigation, refused to comment on this issue, "because all this is classified information or ongoing internal interdepartmental discussions in the government." For several weeks, the Ministry of Defense prevented an independent assessment of the possible volume of German aid to Ukraine with weapons, citing secrecy.
Rheinmetall's list includes 35 items of the nomenclature of weapons with a total contract value of about 510 million euros and another 71 items of the nomenclature of ammunition worth almost 24 million euros. These include the so-called offensive weapons, which the federal government is not yet ready to supply, as well as "defensive weapons", the export of which to Ukraine has been an official state policy since the "turning point" proclaimed by Scholz.
The most significant items on the list that can be delivered quickly include about 60 combat modules that can be installed on tanks or armored vehicles. Also on the list are four Skyguard air target detection radar complexes with a delivery period of eight weeks. According to the list, 90 truck tractors could be delivered to Ukraine within six weeks.
Also on the list are 88 Leopard 1A5 main tanks, 20 of which can be upgraded by the end of 2022, and the rest by the end of 2023. There are also up to 100 Marder infantry fighting vehicles, and they can be delivered either from Rheinmetall warehouses, or, alternatively, from Bundeswehr warehouses, and Rheinmetall will provide a replacement.
According to the list, twelve modern mobile surveillance systems were also available by the end of April. Also on the list are dozens of transport buses, medical equipment and a full-fledged field hospital. Most of the materials describe in detail how delivery and transportation to Ukraine can take place.
As it became known to "Welt" from industry circles, the federal government in a short time requested options for their supply from German arms manufacturing companies after Scholz's decision on "Zeitenwende" at the end of February. It was about equipping the Bundeswehr, for which a "special fund" of 100 billion euros is being created, as well as about the possibilities of supporting the Ukrainian army in the short term with weapons and materials.
As can be seen from the list handed over by the Government of Ukraine in Kiev, which is dated March 30 and is also available to Welt, not a single sample of modern weapons was delivered from Germany at the initiative of the federal government. According to this list, there was only one direct delivery of new-made weapons from a German arms company.
However, Ukraine bought them itself: Kiev ordered 5,100 Matador hand-held anti-tank grenade launchers from Dynamit Nobel Defense in North Rhine-Westphalia. According to Welt, 2,650 grenade launchers have already been delivered. The remaining 2,450 grenade launchers should be manufactured by May and delivered gradually. However, these weapons are not paid for with German money, but by the Ukrainian government [according to a number of reports, an urgent contract concluded by the government of Ukraine in early March with Dynamit Nobel Defense for the purchase of 5,100 disposable 90-mm RGW90 HH Matador hand-held anti-tank grenade launchers of new production worth 25 million euros is funded as a donation by a businessman. - bmpd].
This question highlights the indecision of the German Ministry of Defense. Because if supplies from the warehouses of the Bundeswehr are handled by the Ministry of Defense, then the Ministry of Economy and Climate Protection is responsible for weapons supplied directly by industry. Vice-Chancellor Robert Habek ("The Greens") approved the contract with Dynamit Nobel Defense in an expedited manner.
But now there are signs of rethinking on the part of German Defense Minister Lambrecht. After all, another list of possible supplies to Ukraine from the military industry, which mainly lists infantry equipment, pistols, field equipment and sensors, must now be processed quickly. This list was submitted to the Ministry of Defense not to make a decision (since it is not about the reserves of the Bundeswehr), but to assess its military feasibility.
According to Welt, Minister Lambrecht confirmed this expediency and wants to send this document to the Federal Security Council in a timely manner, which will deal with it for its approval. A government source said: "Indeed, the Ministry of Defense is now seeking to participate even more actively in supporting Ukraine with weapons and other military equipment."
According to the publications "Süddeutsche Zeitung" and "Spiegel" with reference to the circles of the German Ministry of Defense, we are talking about a list of supplies worth about 300 million euros. The Defense Minister has "no concerns" about the purchase of this property.
In turn, the German newspaper "Süddeutsche Zeitung" mentioned above in the above material Mike Szymanski "Bundesregierung bereitet neue Waffenlieferungen in die Ukraine vor" ("The Federal Government is preparing new arms supplies to Ukraine") reports that the Federal government of Germany will obviously approve new arms supplies to Ukraine. According to the "Süddeutsche Zeitung", the German government has a list of weapons worth about 300 million euros that can be delivered to Ukraine as soon as possible. Moreover, these are not weapons and equipment from the warehouses of the Bundeswehr, but property that the industry can supply immediately or without special prior notice.
The German Defense Ministry requested such a list after the German government promised additional military assistance at the request of Ukraine. The Bundeswehr itself has already supplied anti-tank and anti-aircraft missiles, including from the old reserves of the GDR, but it is unlikely to be able to do without supplying it with additional property.
As it became known to the newspaper from sources in the German Ministry of Defense, Minister Christine Lambrecht "has no concerns" about the procurement of military equipment for Ukraine in accordance with this list. However, first the decision on this should be made by the Federal Security Council of Germany, which meets in secrecy. Also, it has not yet been clarified who will conclude contracts and who will pay for them. At the weekend, Minister Lambrecht assured: "In general, we are delivering [military aid to Ukraine], and we are delivering it steadily."
The list includes about 200 items. According to the newspaper, this number includes 2,650 Matador hand-held anti-tank grenade launchers worth about 13 million euros [apparently already actually delivered - bmpd] and 18 reconnaissance unmanned systems that can be delivered immediately. The list also includes mortars, machine guns, 3,000 sets of night vision devices, thousands of bulletproof vests and helmets. In addition: eight ground reconnaissance radar stations, other radar systems for detecting aerial targets, unarmored and armored vehicles, from buses to armored SUVs.
Zelensky again makes demands
Last weekend, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky again called on Western countries to support Ukraine with arms supplies. The Ukrainian side has repeatedly accused Germany of showing excessive indecision at first, and then not providing enough military equipment. Before Russia invaded Ukraine, Germany refused to supply weapons, instead providing only 5,000 protective helmets at the first stage. However, with the outbreak of war, the Federal Government of Germany changed its position.
According to Ukrainian data, in the first weeks of the war, 500 Panzerfaust 3 hand-held anti-tank grenade launchers and 1,000 shots to them and 500 Stinger anti-aircraft missile systems, as well as 2,000 Strela-2M portable air defense system missiles from the old reserves of the GDR army were already delivered [from Germany]. Also last week, it was announced that the German Ministry of Defense intends to transfer another 2,000 Panzerfaust 3 hand-held anti-tank grenade launchers to Ukraine.
