Sarah Marsh and Sabine Siebold

BERLIN (Reuters), – Germany has agreed to send dozens anti-aircraft tankers to Ukraine to defend against Russian invasion. This was part of what Germany called a turning point after years of military restraint. Berlin claims it will deliver its first Gepard tank in July.

As Russian forces launch an attack on Ukraine’s east, the parliamentarian from Ukraine said Tuesday that this was too slow.

For us, July feels like a ‘what’. Anastasia Radina from Ukraine, a member said to Reuters at World Economic Forum. Let me explain: What happens to a mother who finds herself in an unsanitary basement? Her newborn baby is not fed formula. What is the date of July?

After Moscow’s attack on Ukraine’s eastern and southern regions, Kyiv’s demands for heavy weapons increased. But one reason for Germany’s delay was a lack of ammunition, industry sources and Ukraine’s ambassador said – a fact that was well-known to Berlin when it first made the pledge.

It is clear that Berlin has been caught in confusion by Russia’s attack on Ukraine, which took place on February 24, 2019. According to the German army chief, Germany’s military is severely ill-equipped for combative action. However, Germany has one of the largest defence industries, having exported 9.35 billion euro worth of weapons in 2021, according to data from the government.

To stop an aircraft from coming in, Gepard tanks shoot a series of 35mm shots. Germany does not use them anymore and lacks the ammunition needed to make it.

According to Reuters sources, the supply of weapons to Ukraine is only sensible if there are ammunition. This was obvious to all.

When asked to comment about the shortage of ammunition, the spokesperson from the defense ministry stated that support is being given where it was possible. Berlin stated that on May 20, it had received ammunition from Germany and was sending the tanks. The ministry didn’t respond when asked how they had enough ammunition.

The chief of Germany’s military said that hours after Moscow had launched a special military operation on February 24, he was fed up with Germany’s lack of military support and felt the army was now “more or lesser empty-handed.” To address this problem, the Chancellor Olaf Scholz pledged to create a special defence fund worth 100 billion euros (107 billion dollars) on February 27.

Reuters was told by defense sources that this wasn’t a sudden response to Ukraine’s invasion. Instead, they were referring to a plan drawn up by the defence ministry months before, to be used in negotiations to create his coalition.

This document, classified as confidential, was seen by Reuters. The document stated the Bundeswehr (army) would need approximately 102 billion Euros to fund major defence projects until 2030. It suggested a new special fund that could not be funded by the usual budget.

This plan was not part of the December 2021 alliance treaty. Germany’s government has not responded to our query as to why.

Berlin promised the Gepard tank and has now pledged even more heavy weapons to Ukraine. The special fund will be used to raise defense spending for 2-4 years. It is expected to reach the NATO mandate of 2%. This would place Germany as the third-largest military spending country in the world, behind China and the United States. According to data from Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI),

However, the parliament is yet to approve the special fund.

Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann from the defense committee of Parliament said that Germany was never meant to be a military power.

We are being asked to demonstrate military leadership. StrackZimmermann stated that this is a shift in mentality, which Germans need to adjust to first.” His Free Democrats (FDP), are junior partners in Scholz’s 3-way coalition.

HELMET WARRANTY: 10 YEARS

Germany avoided conflict in the wake of the two world Wars. In 1997, a German foreign minister stated that Germans were “surrounded by friendship” after the fall of Berlin Wall. Russia became the nation’s only source of supply, and the political establishment emphasized engagement and trade.

Home, red tape has made it difficult for the military to obtain helmets that were requested by it in 2013. The Helmets are a German Bundestag Parliamentary Commissioner for Armed Forces Eva Hoegl said.

She stated that it would have taken Germany 10 years to obtain a helmet on the American market. These problems were not covered by the government’s response to inquiries.

Germany’s Army, the Bundeswehr has no combat-ready brigade. This is a unit with around 5,000 troops that defends German territory. The largest economy in Europe has a tenth of its 3,500 main battle tank fleet from the 1980s. One-quarter of its Cold War force is represented by the country’s fighter jets, submarines, and other aircraft.

In years when Germany has to provide a brigade for NATO’s quick reaction force – the troops first in line to respond to any Russian attack – the soldiers have to borrow gear from other units.

According to Reuters, Vice Admiral Carsten Stawitzki (head of procurement in the defense ministry) invited weapon manufacturers to a WebEx meeting to discuss how to improve military readiness for Germany. This was shortly after the invasion.

According to Reuters, an industry source said that “He made it clear that we needed to… ramp up production to prepare for a large volume and variety orders coming in.”

Two defence sources said that this has not happened yet.

A source in the industry said that there were no orders. The source declined to provide details but said that other nations had placed orders for Germany’s defense industry within days of the invasion. The war in Germany has not had an impact on the procurement of defence materials.

“BOLT OF THE BLUE!”

The mixed messages received from Ukrainian diplomats requesting German arms include:

Kyiv had requested Gepards to Germany from the beginning of World War II, but Berlin turned it down, Andrij Melnyk (Broadcaster ntv) said. A request for comment was not received by the government.

For talks about arms delivery to Kyiv, the United States hosted over 40 nations at an American airbase in Ramstein. The day after Christine Lambrecht (German Defence Minister) stated that Berlin had granted export approval to the Gepards. “This is precisely what Ukraine needs right now in order to secure its skies,” she said.

On April 27, Melnyk announced that the Ukraine ambassador said it was “bolt of the blue” as Berlin had stated there was not enough ammunition. Sources in the defence industry said that they learned of the approval by the government to send tanks to Ukraine from media reports.

Only a handful of countries still use the Gepard (or Cheetah as it is known in English). Germany sold its Gepards 10 years ago. It no longer required ammunition storage. KMW, the defense company that made them, now owns the tanks. An official from the company declined to comment on this story.

The bulk of NATO’s heavy weapons sent to Ukraine thus far have been Soviet-built armour still available in East European NATO member countries’ inventories. However, some NATO allies recently began to provide Western howitzers.

Lambrecht stated that Germany would send 7 self-propelled howitzers (SPH) to Ukraine on May 6th. Panzerhaubitze 2000 can strike targets from 40km (20 miles) away. It is among the most powerful artillery weapons available in Bundeswehr arsenals.

According to Berlin, the guns will be sourced from Bundeswehr inventory and delivered in the coming weeks. Germany has begun training Ukrainian troops in Germany, and Germany will provide an initial ammunition package. Further purchases between Kyiv (and the industry) will be made.

However, new Bundeswehr purchases will be slower and some members of the ruling coalition already doubt the necessity for this special fund.

Scholz’s Social Deocrats Youth Leaders (SPD), want more dialogue about the purpose of procurement and a commitment to reforming it.

“I don’t know what I will buy with it.” [the fund]We need to reform our procurement system, which is burning through cash,” Jessica Rosenthal (a member of parliament) said. She also heads the SPD youth organization.

We clearly need to increase military funding, but also in other areas.

($1 = 0.9377 euros)