Defense Minister Lambrecht said that Germany is running out of weapons to help Ukraine
The Bundeswehr is running out of resources to help Ukraine, but Berlin will continue to support Kiev, German Defense Minister Kristina Lambrecht said. In turn, the head of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, Alexey Reznikov, said that the country is ready to test its partners' new weapons in combat. Kiev is experiencing problems with the delivery of Western weapons to the troops, since Western countries supply weapons randomly and in parts, writes the WSJ. What is happening with the supply of weapons to Kiev - in the material of "Gazeta.Ru".
German Defense Minister Christina Lambrecht said that the funds that the German Armed Forces can transfer to Ukraine as part of military assistance are running out.
- Lambrecht said and assured that Berlin will continue to support Kiev.
The head of the German Defense Ministry said that "she has a very trusting and constructive relationship" with her Ukrainian counterpart Alexey Reznikov. Lambrecht also recalled that Berlin has already sent part 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 Germany would not be able to transfer the Fuchs armored personnel carrier to Ukraine due to the need to maintain the defense capability of the Bundeswehr.
What Germany sent to Ukraine
On June 22, the German government published a complete list of weapons intended 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 drones, 30 Gepard anti-aircraft self-propelled guns, the IRIS-T air defense system and three MARS multiple rocket launchers with ammunition. There were 38 positions in the list of already delivered weapons and materials, and another 25 in the list of planned ones.
According to the DPA agency, the Gepard installations should be transferred to Kiev in July. It is assumed that the first batch will include 15 anti-aircraft guns and about 60 thousand rounds of ammunition.
On June 14, Lambrecht reported that the Ukrainian military was finishing learning how to handle German howitzers, after which the guns were supposed to go to Ukraine.
Kiev has repeatedly criticized Berlin for its slowness in the process of supplying weapons and insufficient aid.
Problems with the delivery of weapons
The Wall Street Journal newspaper claims that Ukraine is experiencing problems with the delivery of Western weapons to the troops.
According to the newspaper, due to the fact that Western countries supply weapons randomly and in parts, its transfer to the APU becomes a "logistical nightmare." In particular, this problem concerns artillery - Kiev receives several types of artillery installations produced by different countries, which, despite the standardization of NATO weapons, differ significantly from each other and provide for different service standards. 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 servicemen are accustomed. For example, Panzerhaubitze 2000 self-propelled howitzers weigh about 57 tons, and some bridges on the territory of Ukraine are not designed for such a load, which also complicates logistics.
Shells of different calibers
Ukraine is switching to NATO-caliber shells, as Soviet-style shells are running out in Europe, Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine Oleksiy Danilov said.
"A large number of shells are used daily. The 152- and 122-caliber shells are almost running out in Europe altogether, if not to say that they have already run out," Danilov said. According to him, now the Ukrainian army is switching to NATO standards.
Earlier, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba said that even if the supply of Western weapons to Kiev stops, his country will continue to resist Russia.
According to him, the sooner Kiev receives weapons, the more help there will be for the country. If it is sent later, many people will die, the minister believes.
Testing of new weapons
The head of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine said that the country is ready to test new weapons of Western partners in combat operations on its territory and share all information and experience with them.
He noted that one of the examples of weapons tested by the Ukrainian military was the Polish Krab artillery system.
"I think that for our partners in Poland, the USA, France, Germany, or our Turkish partners, there is a good chance to test their equipment," Reznikov added.
We will have to adjust production
The head of the largest American defense company Northrop Grumman, Cathy Worden, called on the authorities to give a signal about the weapons necessary for Kiev, since the available stocks may not be enough.
"I would not say that we are running out of ammunition stocks, but if the US authorities expect that in the coming years we will produce as much for the needs of Ukraine as we are producing now, then the company will not have enough production capacity for the state defense order for the formation of reserves of combat supplies to be fully executed," Warden Financial quotes Times.
She clarified that due to problems with logistics and the search for components, the deadlines for completing orders for the production of weapons have increased two to three times. According to the FT, it can take years for the company to purchase parts and assemble weapons.
Northrop Grumman receives 80% of its annual revenue from orders from the Pentagon. The company produces Bushmaster armored personnel carriers and RQ-4 Global Hawk reconnaissance drones.
Another Pentagon supplier, Raytheon, previously announced that it would take time to replenish stocks of Stinger MANPADS, which were supplied to Ukraine in large quantities.
The Financial Times notes that the entire industry is facing a shortage of components due to disruption of global logistics chains. The situation is especially difficult with electronic components and microchips.
At the same time, Rebecca Koffler, a former officer of the US Department of Defense Intelligence Agency, believes that no American weapons will help Ukraine defeat Russia.
"There is no such amount of money or weapons that would be enough for Ukraine to win, because the Russian army is disproportionately more powerful than the Ukrainian one," she said.
Koffler claims that the United States has already allocated $ 54 billion in aid to Ukraine, but it has not brought results.
Alice Andreeva
