Germany boosts Ukraine’s defence capabilities with new weapons, vehicles, and drones

Germany updated its military aid package to Ukraine on Monday, March 17, including the provision of Gepard air defence systems and drones.

The updated list of military assistance from Germany includes various types of vehicles, ammunition, and advanced systems to strengthen Ukraine’s defence, Caliber.Az reports.

Among the new supplies, Ukraine will receive 24 mine-resistant ambush-protected MRAP vehicles, ammunition for Leopard 1 main battle tanks, MARDER infantry fighting vehicles, and BMPs.

 In addition, Germany has provided three Gepard self-propelled air defence systems and 10,000 rounds of ammunition for these systems, with each round containing 640 shots. Germany also supplied missiles for the IRIS-T SLM medium-range anti-aircraft missile system, 5,000 rounds of 155-mm artillery ammunition, 2,000 rounds of 122-mm ammunition, and 8,000 rounds of 120-mm mortar ammunition.

Furthermore, Germany delivered 50 VECTOR reconnaissance drones with spare parts, 30 Gereon RCS tracked drones, and 30 drone detection systems. In addition to the drones, Germany also provided two WISENT 1 armoured mine clearance vehicles, 100 portable demining systems, two mine trawls, as well as laser rangefinders, infrared binoculars, vehicles, assault rifles, and first aid kits.

The military support package is part of Germany’s broader commitment to Ukraine, with funding for the security capacity-building initiative in 2024 set at approximately 7.1 billion euros. These funds also contribute to Germany’s contribution to the European Peace Facility of the European Union, which reimburses EU member states for their military assistance to Ukraine.

Germany has already spent around 5 billion euros in 2023 and 1.6 billion euros in 2022 on military aid. An additional 2.9 billion euros have been committed for future deliveries, scheduled to arrive from 2025 to 2028.

Since the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022, Germany has provided military materials from its own armed forces worth approximately 5.2 billion euros, based on estimated replacement values. In addition, over 10,000 Ukrainian soldiers have received military training in Germany, with related expenses reaching 282 million euros, excluding costs for the medical treatment of injured soldiers.

By Tamilla Hasanova