Germany to send Ukraine $1B in air defense tech, plus more tanks

PARIS — Germany will send about €1 billion (U.S. $1.1 billion) worth of air defense systems to Ukraine as part of a second “winter package” for the embattled country , the German Defence Ministry said in a statement Tuesday.

The support will include a Patriot air defense system and two IRIS-T surface-to-air systems, as well as 10 more Leopard 1 A5 main battle tanks, three Gepard anti-aircraft guns, armored trucks and ambulances, in addition to more than €20 million in kit specifically for Ukraine’s special forces.

The latest support follows a €400 million package for Ukraine announced in September that included ammunition, mine-resistant combat vehicles and drones. After initial reluctance to provide Ukraine with military aid following Russia’s invasion of the country, Germany has now overtaken the U.K. and Poland in terms of support, with only the U.S. providing more equipment.

“I’m grateful to Germany for today’s large military aid package,” Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter. “As winter approaches, this is exactly the support we need.”

The new package includes a second Patriot air defense system to be supplied by Germany, including a fire control unit, radar array and eight launchers, as well as more than 60 missiles, the ministry said. The equipment will come directly from the German military’s stocks, and the country plans to start training Ukrainian personnel on the system in the coming weeks.

Germany will also supply Ukraine with a third IRIS-T system with medium-range missiles, plus a second IRIS-T for short-range defense, also with missiles, with delivery to take place this month.

The announcement comes ahead of a meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group, the alliance of countries backing Ukraine with military equipment.

“To protect critical infrastructure at the onset of winter and to provide further military support, Germany is supplying Ukraine with additional air defense,” German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius said. “With this new `winter package’ we are further increasing the operational readiness of the Ukrainian armed forces in coming months.”

Germany had promised Zelenskyy last week it would deliver Ukraine a second Patriot system, while the delivery of further IRIS-T systems fulfils commitments made in a prior month, the ministry noted.

The additional Leopard 1 tanks and Gepard guns, 15 armored transport vehicles, and 20 armored ambulances will arrive in Ukraine in the coming weeks, the ministry said. Germany said more 155mm ammunition is currently being supplied.

Germany said a total of 10,000 Ukrainian soldiers will have been trained in the country by the end of 2023.

Rudy Ruitenberg is a Europe correspondent for Defense News. He started his career at Bloomberg News and has experience reporting on technology, commodity markets and politics.

巴黎——德国国防部周二在一份声明中表示，德国将向乌克兰运送价值约 10 亿欧元（11 亿美元）的防空系统，作为对这个饱受战火蹂躏的国家的第二轮“冬季援助计划”的一部分。

此次援助将包括一套爱国者防空系统和两套IRIS-T地对空系统，以及10辆豹1A5主战坦克、3门猎豹防空炮、装甲卡车和救护车，此外还有价值超过2000万欧元的装备专门用于乌克兰特种部队。

继9月份宣布向乌克兰提供4亿欧元援助计划（包括弹药、防雷战车和无人机）之后，德国再次向乌克兰提供援助。在俄罗斯入侵乌克兰后，德国最初不愿向乌克兰提供军事援助，但现在其援助规模已超过英国和波兰，仅次于美国。

乌克兰总统泽连斯基在X（原名Twitter）上发帖称：“我感谢德国今天提供的巨额军事援助。随着冬季临近，这正是我们需要的支持。”

乌克兰国防部表示，新一揽子计划包括由德国提供的第二套“爱国者”防空系统，其中包括火控单元、雷达阵列和八套发射装置，以及60多枚导弹。这些装备将直接从德国军方库存调拨，德国计划在未来几周内开始对乌克兰人员进行系统操作培训。

德国还将向乌克兰提供第三套 IRIS-T 中程导弹防御系统，以及第二套 IRIS-T 近程防御系统（同样配备导弹），交付工作将于本月进行。

这项声明是在乌克兰防务联络小组会议召开前发布的，该小组是由向乌克兰提供军事装备的国家组成的联盟。

德国国防部长鲍里斯·皮斯托里乌斯表示：“为了在冬季来临之际保护关键基础设施并提供进一步的军事支持，德国正在向乌克兰提供额外的防空力量。通过这项新的‘冬季援助计划’，我们将在未来几个月进一步提升乌克兰武装部队的作战准备水平。”

德国上周向泽连斯基承诺将向乌克兰提供第二套爱国者导弹系统，而进一步交付IRIS-T导弹系统则履行了上个月作出的承诺，国防部指出。

乌克兰国防部表示，未来几周内，将有更多豹1坦克和猎豹自行高炮、15辆装甲运输车和20辆装甲救护车运抵乌克兰。德国方面表示，目前正在向乌克兰提供更多155毫米炮弹。

德国表示，到 2023 年底，将有 1 万名乌克兰士兵在该国接受训练。

鲁迪·鲁伊滕贝格是《防务新闻》的欧洲记者。他的职业生涯始于彭博新闻社，拥有报道科技、大宗商品市场和政治方面的经验。