Germany to buy US HIMARS launchers for Ukraine

COLOGNE, Germany — The German government will buy three HIMARS launchers from U.S. military stocks and give them to Ukraine, Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said in Washington.

The swap essentially follows through on a weapons transfer workaround designed when the fate of a $61 billion bill for military aid to Ukraine was still iffy in Congress. Lawmakers eventually passed the measure in late April following months of uncertainty amid resistance from isolationist Republicans aligned with ex-President Trump.

“The decision of Congress has overtaken us, but we’re sticking with it,” Pistorius told reporters on May 9, referring to the planned purchase that will cost Berlin roughly $30 million, as Der Spiegel reported.

Ukrainian officials have described the High Mobility Artillery Rocket System, made by Lockheed Martin, as pivotal in repelling Russia’s initial assault wave in 2022.

Pistorius was on a trip to meet defense leaders in the United States and Canada this week, returning to Germany on Friday.

He came prepared with figures underlining the defense-industrial cooperation between Berlin and Washington, ties that he described as essential beyond the lofty talk of two democracies aligned on values. Germany has 380 contracts with U.S. defense companies, amounting to €23 billion, or $25 billion, Pistorius said.

Big-ticket U.S. weapons ordered by Germany in recent years include Lockheed’s F-35 fighter jet, Boeing’s P-8 Poseidon maritime-surveillance aircraft and Chinook transport helicopters, as well as Raytheon’s Patriot air-defense system.

Sebastian Sprenger is associate editor for Europe at Defense News, reporting on the state of the defense market in the region, and on U.S.-Europe cooperation and multi-national investments in defense and global security. Previously he served as managing editor for Defense News. He is based in Cologne, Germany.

德国科隆——德国国防部长鲍里斯·皮斯托里乌斯在华盛顿表示，德国政府将从美国军方库存中购买三套HIMARS导弹发射系统，并将它们赠予乌克兰。

此次武器交换实际上是对一项武器转让变通方案的落实，该方案是在国会尚未就一项价值610亿美元的对乌克兰军事援助法案的命运达成一致时制定的。经过数月的波折，以及与前总统特朗普结盟的孤立主义共和党人的阻挠，议员们最终在4月下旬通过了这项法案。

据《明镜周刊》报道，皮斯托瑞斯在 5 月 9 日告诉记者：“国会的决定让我们措手不及，但我们会坚持下去。”他指的是柏林计划斥资约 3000 万美元购买的这笔款项。

乌克兰官员称，洛克希德·马丁公司制造的高机动性火箭炮系统在2022年击退俄罗斯的第一波进攻中发挥了关键作用。

皮斯托瑞斯本周出访美国和加拿大，会见了两国国防领导人，并于周五返回德国。

他准备了一系列数据，强调柏林和华盛顿在国防工业领域的合作。他称，这种合作远非两国在价值观上保持一致的空谈，而是至关重要的。皮斯托瑞斯表示，德国与美国国防公司签订了380份合同，总价值达230亿欧元，约合250亿美元。

近年来德国订购的美国高价武器包括洛克希德公司的 F-35 战斗机、波音公司的 P-8 海神海上巡逻机和奇努克运输直升机，以及雷神公司的爱国者防空系统。

塞巴斯蒂安·斯普伦格是《防务新闻》欧洲版副主编，负责报道该地区的防务市场状况，以及美欧在防务和全球安全领域的合作和多国投资。此前，他曾担任《防务新闻》执行主编。他现居德国科隆。