Slovakia base starts operations to repair military equipment for Ukraine

A base for repairing military equipment for the Armed Forces of Ukraine has started working in the city of Kosice in eastern Slovakia.

The statement came from the head of the Situation Centre Ukraine in the German Defence Ministry, Brigadier General Christian Froyding, Ukrainska Pravda reports.

"With the help of a new repair centre near Slovakia's border with Ukraine, the governments and the arms industry want to ensure the continued use of heavy weapons to repel Russia's aggressive war," Froyding said.

The German tank-building company Krauss-Maffei Wegmann (KMW) is now organising repairs of large equipment in the region that was worn out or damaged in battles in Ukraine, such as Panzerhaubitze 2000 self-propelled howitzers.

The legal basis for cooperation is an intergovernmental agreement between Slovakia and the German government.

Last week, Slovak Foreign Minister Rastislav Kacher announced that his state would consider resuming the production of ammunition for Ukraine's needs.

Earlier, the Slovak foreign minister announced the approval of a new package of military assistance for Ukraine, which includes large-calibre ammunition for fighters, warm clothes and other equipment.

According to him, Slovakia will continue humanitarian assistance to Ukraine so that Ukrainians can more easily overwinter.

According to media reports, NATO is discussing the possibility of investing in old factories in the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Bulgaria to restore the production of Soviet-era shells for Ukrainian artillery weapons, which still remain largely Soviet-style.

We are talking, in particular, about the production of Soviet 152-mm and 122-mm shells for Ukraine's artillery weapons.