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☆ Ukraine war live updates: German and British tanks arrive in Ukraine; Russia fires supersonic missiles off Japan's coast
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-28 | by ( Holly Ellyatt | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

The first shipment of German Leopard 2 tanks, much-awaited by Ukraine, has arrived in the war-torn country, Germany's defense ministry said Tuesday. Eighteen of the tanks, ammunition and spare parts, as well as two "Buffalo" armored recovery vehicles arrived in Ukraine, the ministry said in a statement. "As promised, our tanks arrived on time in the hands of our Ukrainian friends. The Bundeswehr, Germany's armed forces, has spent the last two months training Ukrainian soldiers on the weapon systems at a site near Munster, Germany. On the heels of German Chancellor Olaf Scholz's decision in January to provide Ukraine with Leopard 2 tanks, the Biden administration announced it will equip Ukraine with the mighty M1A1 Abrams tank.

☆ How Ukraine's closest allies turned the tide on sending advanced tanks, and could do the same for military jets
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-28 | by ( Sinéad Baker | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +10 min

Their success, an expert told Insider, shows how Europe's balance of power has shifted eastwards since Russia's invasion in February 2022. Sergei Grits/APEstonian Foreign Minister Urmas Reinsalu told Insider that Ukraine's allies had been "too slow" when deciding to send weapons to Ukraine. AP Photo/Martin Meissner, FileReinsalu, Estonia's foreign minister, told Insider that he had repeatedly engaged with his German counterpart about the decision. Kallas and Šimonytė, the two prime ministers, both told Insider that they support Ukraine getting military jets. "Ordinarily, on less critical matters, peer pressure happens but the public sees very little of it or none of it," he told Insider.

BRUSSELS, March 20 (Reuters) - European Union countries on Monday agreed a 2 billion euro plan to send 1 million artillery rounds to Ukraine over the next year by digging into their own stockpiles and teaming up to buy more shells. The joint procurement will be limited to companies from the EU and Norway, which has close economic ties to the bloc. Some EU governments wanted the initiative to be open to a broader market, arguing this would help get munitions more quickly to Ukraine. But others said EU money should go to EU companies and insisted they would have capacity to meet demand. German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius, whose country is taking part in the joint procurement initiative, described it as "new territory" for the EU.

☆ Putin says Germany remains "occupied"
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

March 14 (Reuters) - Russian President Vladimir Putin said Germany's response to the explosion on North Sea pipelines showed that the country remained "occupied" and unable to act independently decades after its surrender at the end of World War Two. Putin, interviewed on Russian television, also said European leaders had been browbeaten into losing their sense of sovereignty and independence. "The matter is that European politicians have said themselves publicly that after World War Two, Germany was never a fully sovereign state," Russian news agencies quoted Putin as telling state Rossiya-1 TV channel. Putin told the interviewer that the blasts were carried out on a "state level" and dismissed as "complete nonsense" suggestions that an autonomous pro-Ukraine group was responsible. The pipelines were intended to bring Russian gas to Germany, though since Moscow's invasion of Ukraine a year ago Berlin has taken steps to reduce its reliance on Russian hydrocarbons.

☆ Returning to frontline, Ukrainian Leopard crews see their 'cat' as game-changer
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-13 | by ( Sabine Siebold | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

FIGHTING ALONGSIDE THE 'CAT'In Bergen, the German trainers were happy with the Ukrainians' performance over their six-week crash course. Of course, they are not heading for the training ground but directly into battle. One of the Ukrainian gunners rejected any talk of fear but warned the Russians to brace for the arrival of the Leopard. "The Leopard tanks will enable us to make the breakthroughs that we need. And other Ukrainian units will feel safer, too, when they fight alongside the cat."

☆ Europe's arms spending on Ukraine boosts defense companies
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-09 | by ( Anna Cooban | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

London CNN —After months of soaring stock prices, Europe’s defense companies hardly needed another boost. But a tentative €2 billion ($2.1 billion) European Union plan to procure ammunition for war-torn Ukraine may provide just that. Speaking in Stockholm Wednesday, Ukraine’s Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov said his country needed one million rounds of ammunition “as soon as possible” to deter Russian forces. A final decision is expected on March 20 when EU foreign and defense ministers meet in Brussels. In early February, the bloc announced that it would inject another €545 million ($575 million) into its €3.6 billion ($3.8 billion) military assistance fund for Ukraine.

Investigations are ongoing as to what caused the Nord Stream pipelines, supplying Russian energy to Europe, to rupture and spew bubbles of natural gas into the Baltic Sea last September. "We have to make a clear distinction whether it was a Ukrainian group, whether it may have happened at Ukrainian orders, or a pro-Ukrainian group (acting) without knowledge of the government. Pistorius said earlier the likelihood was "equally high" that it could have been a "false flag operation staged to blame Ukraine". UKRAINE PLAYS DOWN CONCERNSThe New York Times said there was no evidence that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy or other Ukrainian government officials had played any role in the attacks. U.S. officials said no American or British nationals were involved," according to the New York Times report.

☆ Russia's war on Ukraine latest: Wagner mercenaries claim control of Bakhmut's east
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-08 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

FIGHTING* German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius on Wednesday warned against reaching premature conclusions on who was responsible for blowing up the Nord Stream pipelines, suggesting the attack could have been a "false flag" operation to blame Ukraine. * Russian forces made more than 30 unsuccessful attacks over the past day near Orikhovo-Vasylivka alone, 20 km (12 miles) northwest of Bakhmut, the General Staff of the Ukraine's Armed Forces said on Wednesday. * Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu said the seizure of Bakhmut would allow Moscow's forces to mount further offensive operations deeper inside Ukraine. * Ukrainian Defence Minister Oleksii Reznikov urged his European Union counterparts on Wednesday to support a plan to buy 1 million artillery shells to help Kyiv fight Russia's invasion and replenish their own stocks. * External backers pour billions into Ukraine* How has China stood by 'no limits' partner Russia?

Germany wants Switzerland to sell some of the tanks back to arms maker Rheinmetall (RHMG.DE), which would allow the company to backfill gaps in the armaments of European Union and NATO members. Germany, Poland, Portugal, Finland and Sweden are among countries sending Leopard tanks to help Ukraine defend itself against Russian attack, creating gaps in their own arsenals. German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius and Economics Minister Robert Habeck informed Swiss Defence Minister Viola Amherd about the project in a letter dated Feb. 23, the defence ministries in Bern and Berlin told Reuters on Friday. Under its neutrality laws and a separate arms embargo, Switzerland is prohibited from sending weapons directly to Ukraine. The Swiss military currently has 134 Leopard 2 tanks in service and a further 96 in storage.

☆ Germany to place order for backfilling howitzers months earlier than planned
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

BERLIN, Feb 26 (Reuters) - German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius said on Sunday he expected the contracts for the backfilling of howitzers that Berlin rushed to Ukraine last year to be signed by the end of March, months earlier than originally planned. "If everything works out, the contracts for the new howitzers will be signed by the end of the coming month," he told German public broadcaster ARD. Pistorius, who took office in January, did not specify the number of weapons to be reordered, but the German military last year handed over 14 self-propelled howitzers produced by Krauss-Maffei Wegmann to Kyiv. Pistorius' predecessor had planned to present the order for new howitzers to parliament for approval in mid-2023, according to a defence source. Reporting by Sabine Siebold; Editing by Tom SimsOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ China should be judged by its actions, not words, German defence minister says
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BERLIN, Feb 26 (Reuters) - German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius on Sunday reacted with scepticism to a Chinese ceasefire proposal for the war in Ukraine. Beijing offered the proposal on Friday, the first anniversary of Russia's invasion of Ukraine. "I am leaning towards saying, yes, Crimea is Ukrainian territory and it therefore has to be given back," he said in the interview. Zelenskiy says his troops will eventually drive Russia from all the captured territory, including the Crimea peninsula. Reporting by Sabine Siebold Editing by Tom Sims and Frances KerryOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

BERLIN, Feb 20 (Reuters) - German Finance Minister Christian Lindner considers the budget demands made by his government coalition partners to be excessive and "simply unrealistic", he told Reuters in a TV interview on Monday. Lindner said the requested additional spending amounted to about 70 billion euros ($70.78 billion) compared with earlier plans. According to the finance minister, the demands head into the range of 100 billion euros more per year for the years 2025 and onward. The new Defence Minister Boris Pistorius wants 10 additional billion euros for the defence budget next year, according to people with knowledge of the matter. "However, what is clear is that 10 billion euros more in 2024 than now is an unrealistic figure," he said.

☆ Leopard tanks like a Mercedes, says Ukrainian soldier training in Germany
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-20 | by ( Sabine Siebold | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

MUNSTER, Germany, Feb 20 (Reuters) - A Ukrainian soldier compared Germany's Leopard 2 tanks to a Mercedes as he underwent training with them ahead of their arrival on the battlefield, saying he hoped they would bring a breakthrough in the war. He is among dozens of Ukrainian troops Germany is training on Leopard 2 simulators and then the tanks themselves at its largest military training ground, in Munster, before sending them to Ukraine. In all, Germany is training several hundred troops on various aspects of warcraft as part of a European effort to instruct some 15,000 Ukrainian soldiers. German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius said he was impressed by the Ukrainian troops. They know that they will be back at the frontline in five weeks' time," said a German lieutenant-colonel who is responsible for the Leopard training and only gave his name as Peter.

☆ Co-chief of Germany's ruling SPD sceptical of NATO spending goal
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BERLIN, Feb 19 (Reuters) - The co-chief of Germany's ruling Social Democrats (SPD) is sceptical about NATO's goal for each member to spend 2% of economic output on defence, according to a newspaper report, underscoring ambivalence in the country about bolstering the military. The party of Chancellor Olaf Scholz did recently commit to the 2% NATO goal, but as with junior coalition partner the Greens, has members who remain unconvinced. According to FAZ, Esken expressed scepticism about the efforts of Defence Minister Boris Pistorius, also of the SPD, to hike defence spending in next year's budget. "Ten billion euros (more) is a lot of money," she was quoted as saying. Germany's regular 2023 defence budget was around 50 billion euros ($53.5 billion), well short of 75 billion euros, or 2% of economic output.

☆ Hungary's Orban says Europe 'drifting into' Ukraine war
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BUDAPEST, Feb 18 (Reuters) - Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said on Saturday that Europe was "indirectly at war with Russia" as several European countries pledge to send battle tanks to help Ukraine fight Moscow's invasion. Orban, who last met Russian President Vladimir Putin just three weeks before Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022, projected that the war could drag on for years. "Europe is drifting into the war in these very minutes, it is doing a dangerous balancing act," he told his supporters in a speech. Orban said the stance of Poland and the Baltic states with respect to the war was understandable. It could have treated it as a local regional war, or a military conflict between two Slavic nations as Hungary suggested," Orban said.

☆ Germany to restart production of Gepard ammunition for Ukraine, minister says
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

BRUSSELS, Feb 14 (Reuters) - Germany has signed contracts with Rheinmetall (RHMG.DE) to restart the production of ammunition for the Gepard anti-aircraft guns it has delivered to Kyiv, German Defense minister Boris Pistorius said on Tuesday. "We will quickly start our own production of Gepard ammunition at Rheinmetall. I am very happy we have been able to guarantee the delivery of this important part of air defense," Pistorius said before a meeting with NATO ministers in Brussels. Germany has been trying for months to find new munitions for the Gepard anti-aircraft guns which its own military had decommissioned in 2010. Reporting by Bart Meijer and Sabine Siebold; Editing by Benoit Van OverstraetenOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ German govt security council OKs delivery of 178 Leopard 1 tanks to Ukraine - source
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-07 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BERLIN, Feb 7 (Reuters) - The German government's security council has approved delivery of 178 Leopard 1 tanks to Ukraine from industry stocks, considerably more than previously announced, a source said, confirming an earlier Spiegel magazine report. "The export of 178 Leopard 1s is approved," said the person, who was familiar with the situation. The report emerged as German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius made a surprise appearance in Kyiv. Some would be sent in the summer but the bulk of the Leopard 1s would be delivered next year, Der Spiegel reported. The move follows the German government's decision last month, amid mounting international pressure, to deliver more modern Leopard 2 battle tanks from army stocks.

☆ Germany approves Leopard 1 delivery to Ukraine, in talks with Qatar over Gepards -newspaper
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BERLIN, Feb 3 (Reuters) - The German government has approved the delivery of Leopard 1 tanks to Ukraine from industrial stocks and is in talks over purchasing back 15 Gepard tanks from Qatar to send to Kyiv, Sueddeutsche Zeitung reported on Friday. The delivery of the Leopard tanks to Ukraine could happen anytime once the tanks are repaired, the newspaper reported, citing government sources. Rheinmetall and Flensburger Fahrzeugbau Gesellschaft (FFG) want to recondition dozens of Leopards 1 tanks and could supply them to Ukraine if Kyiv was willing to buy them, it added. "The Gepards have proven themselves very well in the war in Ukraine. If we could get more from partners here, that would definitely help the Ukrainians," new German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius was quoted as saying by the newspaper.

In 2022, Rheinmetall made some 60,000 to 70,000 rounds each of tank and artillery shells, according to Papperger, who said production could be boosted immediately. A few days before the meeting with the new defence minister, Papperger pushed for an increase of Germany's defence budget. "The 51 billion euros in the defence budget will not suffice to purchase everything that is needed. Even before Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Germany was 20 billion euros short of reaching NATO's target for ammunitions stockpiling, according to a defence source. To plug the munitions gap alone, Papperger estimates the Bundeswehr (German armed forces) would need to invest three to four billion euros per year.

☆ Germany's defence fund not enough, sending fighter jets 'ruled out': defence minister
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/2] German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius puts on ear protection during firing practice, at armoured infantry training area Altengrabow, Germany January 26, 2023. Kay Nietfeld/Pool via REUTERSBERLIN, Jan 27 (Reuters) - Germany's 100 billion euro ($108 billion) special defence fund is no longer enough to cover its needs, the new Defence Minister Boris Pistorius said in an interview with Sueddeutsche Zeitung published on Friday. Asked whether Germany would sent fighter jets to Ukraine, the next request from Kyiv after Germany approved earlier this week the delivery of Leopard 2 tanks, Pistorius said this was "ruled out". "Fighter aircrafts are much more complex systems than main battle tanks and have a completely different range and firepower. ($1 = 0.9223 euros)Writing by Matthias Williams, Victoria Waldersee, editing by Rachel More, William MacleanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

The U.S. Pentagon presented its best arguments, publicly and privately, against sending Abrams - its most advanced battle tanks - to Ukraine. The reversal ended a rare public division in the alliance that Washington officials feared Moscow could exploit. TANK DELIVERIES LIKELY MONTHS AWAYIn Washington, senior U.S. officials had privately expressed consternation at Germany's attempts to tie the Abrams tanks to delivery of the Leopards. He also discussed the issue in multiple phone conversations with Biden this month, senior Biden administration officials said. But at one point during Austin's trip, Washington asked Berlin to stop publicly tying Germany's approval of the Leopard tanks to the Biden administration sending Abrams tanks.

☆ Germany U-turns over battle tanks, saying it will send Leopard 2s to Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-25 | by ( Holly Ellyatt | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Germany Chancellor Olaf Scholz announced on Wednesday that Germany will provide Ukraine with 14 Leopard 2 tanks out of its own Bundeswehr (German armed forces) stocks. Germany said its goal was to "quickly assemble two tank battalions with Leopard 2 tanks for Ukraine. As a first step, Germany will supply a company with 14 Leopard 2 A6 tanks from Bundeswehr stocks. Reports emerged late Tuesday that Chancellor Scholz was ready to agree to send 14 Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine, while the Biden administration was potentially prepared to provide a couple dozen M1 Abrams tanks. Warsaw on Tuesday sent a request to Berlin, asking permission to re-export 14 of its own Leopard tanks to Kyiv.

☆ Germany agrees to send Leopard tanks to Ukraine, allies to follow
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-25 | by ( Andreas Rinke | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Germany's decision paves the way for other countries such as Poland, Spain, Finland, the Netherlands and Norway to supply some of their Leopard tanks to Ukraine, going some way towards delivering the hundreds of tanks that Ukraine says it needs. "Germany will always be at the forefront when it comes to supporting Ukraine," Scholz told German parliament to applause. Germany aims to quickly establish two battalions with Leopard 2 tanks for Ukraine and initially provide 14 Leopard 2 tanks from its own inventory. A battalion normally comprises three or four companies with around 14 tanks each. Poland has also pledged 14 tanks and Britain has promised 14 of its own Challengers.

☆ Germany refuses to commit to sending tanks to Ukraine despite pressure from allies
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-24 | by ( Holly Ellyatt | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Germany has again refused to commit to allowing German-made tanks to be sent to Ukraine despite intense pressure. "We are looking into the matter, what the current status is regarding our Leopard tanks," he said in translated comments. He noted that the war had reached a "pivotal moment," however, and that allies "must provide heavier units to Ukraine. Germany was believed to be reluctant to send its own tanks unless the U.S. delivered its own Abrams vehicles. Washington has been noncommittal, saying that just the training to maintain and operate its tanks would require months.

Pressure has been building on German Chancellor Olaf Scholz's government to send its Leopard tanks to Ukraine and let other countries send the ones they own. Ukraine says heavily armoured Western battle tanks would give its ground troops more mobility and protection ahead of a new Russian offensive that Kyiv expects in the near future. Germany has previously said that no country had formally asked for permission to send their Leopard tanks. A German defence source told Reuters that Poland had submitted a request to let it supply up to 14 Leopard 2 A4 tanks to Ukraine. He expressed confidence that a decision on sending battle tanks would come soon.

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