Months of pleas by the Ukrainian government have paid off: Germany is supplying the army with “Marder” tanks and a Patriot missile defense system. So far, the country has received Soviet-made main battle tanks and armored personnel carriers from Eastern European NATO countries. Anti-aircraft or armored recovery vehicles from Western manufacturers were also supplied.
The German main battle tanks and armored cars such as the Marder or Leopard 2 are now going to the Ukrainian army for the first time. The weapons training must be conducted in Germany or a NATO country. Both the German and US governments want to provide training for Ukrainian soldiers on their respective weapon systems.
Call Scholz/Biden
The United States will also provide the Kiev government with Bradley light armored personnel carriers and, as planned, Patriot systems. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and US President Joe Biden agreed on this in a telephone conversation on Thursday evening. “President Biden and Chancellor Scholz expressed their joint determination to provide Ukraine with necessary financial, humanitarian, military and diplomatic support for as long as necessary,” the German government said in a statement. The two are both “unbreakable solidarity” with Ukraine and its people – “in the face of the Russian Federation’s unleashed aggression.”
Scholz: Cannot act alone
It was said from German government circles that Ukraine is likely to receive several dozen martens. Until now, the country had received, among others, main battle tanks and armored personnel carriers of Soviet design, as well as anti-aircraft and armored recovery vehicles from Western manufacturers. The government in Kiev has been asking the German government for the right weapon systems for months, so far without success. Chancellor Olaf Scholz had always stressed that Germany would not act alone and that no other NATO country had ever sent such tanks to Ukraine.
However, on Wednesday, the French government announced its intention to deliver AMX-10 RC reconnaissance tanks. The German-American agreement is the result of government votes that have been underway since December 10.
Weapon details
The Marder armored personnel carrier comes from the Düsseldorf armaments company Rheinmetall and is considered manoeuvrable and flexible. It was designed during the Cold War and has been in service with the German Bundeswehr for decades. With defensive weapons, he can fight armored vehicles, among other things. Infantry fighting vehicles are not considered main battle tanks, but provide roughly the same level of protection.
The Patriot anti-aircraft missile system is considered one of the most modern in the world. It can be used to fight ballistic missiles and cruise missiles, for example. Up to 50 possible targets can be monitored simultaneously, with up to five actively engaged. The Bundeswehr has had this system since 1989. Two years later it was first used during the Gulf War.
Source: Krone
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