Scholz announces more Gepard, Iris-Т systems for Ukraine

Germany, together with its partners, will continue to help the Armed Forces of Ukraine both with weapons and training.

Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz made the statement in an address to the Bundestag on Thursday, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.

"Putin continues to bet on military victory. But this victory won’t happen. That’s including because we and our partners will continue to support Ukraine," said the head of the German government.

He recalled that throughout last year, Germany has provided comprehensive aid to Ukraine amounting to more than EUR14 billion.

The politician listed the weapons that his country had transferred to Ukraine in close coordination with partners. In particular, he noted that in the coming weeks, Ukraine would receive additional Gepard self-propelled guns and Iris-T systems, which will protect Ukraine against Russian strikes. The industry is at the same time working on the production of more projectiles and spare parts.

More than 3,000 Ukrainian soldiers have already undergone training in Germany, and more than 1,000 recruits will soon start their training courses, the chancellor informed lawmakers. He noted that Germany had become the central training hub for the Ukrainian forces in Europe, in coordination with the U.S. and Great Britain.

Scholz noted that decisions on the transfer of any types of weapons are not easy ones, but they are made in close coordination with allies and based on the principle that NATO does not become a party to the war.

The head of the government also emphasized the need to increase combat capabilities of his own army, the Bundeswehr, and the ability to counter hybrid threats, such as cyber attacks and disinformation campaigns run by Russia. Germany has already gotten rid of its dependency on Russian energy, noted the head of its government.

Russian aggression became a turning point in history not only for Ukraine, but also for Germany and the whole of Europe, concluded Scholz.

As reported, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on February 27, 2022, three days after the start of Russia’s full-scale war against Ukraine, made a historic speech in which he announced that Germany would withdraw from its long-standing policy of not supplying weapons to crisis regions.