There has been a long struggle over the delivery of heavy weapons to Ukraine. Now the country is supposed to get a state-of-the-art artillery system from Germany to defend itself against the Russian war of aggression.
Germany will deliver seven Panzerhaubitz 2000 to Ukraine. An agreement had been reached on this, said Defense Minister Christine Lambrecht in Sliac in Slovakia.
The weapon systems should come from ongoing repairs and should therefore not be immediately lacking in the Bundeswehr. Training should be offered for howitzers.
In the country bordering Ukraine, the SPD politician visited German soldiers who had been deployed to NATO’s eastern flank with the Patriot air defense system to reinforce them.
The self-propelled howitzer is a heavy artillery system with a cannon mounted on a tracked vehicle – resembling a tank. At the end of March, the Bundestag had demanded the delivery of heavy weapons to Ukraine and decided on a joint application by the Union and the ruling traffic light parties. Lambrecht had also promised a delivery of anti-aircraft tanks Gepard, of which the manufacturer KMW still has 50 units in stock. The supply of heavy weapons has long been controversial.
«Precision and large combat distance»
With standard ammunition, the self-propelled howitzer can fire from a distance of 30 kilometers, with range-enhanced ammunition 40 kilometers are possible, according to the Bundeswehr. The gun crew can therefore fire up to six shells in such a way that they hit at the same time. It is stated: “The Panzerhaubitze 2000 is one of the most modern artillery pieces in the world. Their strength lies in their precision and in their great fighting distance.”
Internal military circles had also raised concerns about handing over the weapon system from their own stocks. Alliance obligations and the feared limitation of their own fighting ability were mentioned. Advocates of a delivery pointed out that battles were going on in Ukraine against Russian attackers, in which the future order in Europe could be decisively decided and a victory of the Russian armed forces must therefore be prevented.
As a deterrent, the Bundeswehr had already brought six of its 2000 self-propelled howitzers to Lithuania, where they are reinforcing the German-led NATO battle group.
Source: Stern
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