“We have received a request from the Ukrainian side in the past few days,” a spokeswoman for the German ministry told AFP, without giving any details about the number.
It is not yet known whether Berlin will accept or not, which is expected to spark intense discussions internally.
The German government has significantly increased its military supplies to Kiev in recent months, but remains reticent about providing it with cruise missiles or supporting the Ukrainian Air Force and assisting in the delivery of F-16 fighters, for example.
Britain, one of Kiev’s main supporters, recently announced its intention to deliver Storm Shadow missiles to Ukraine, to be the first to provide it with this type of long-range weapon.
These developments come as Kiev has been preparing for months to launch a counterattack in order to expel Russian forces from the territory it controls in Ukraine.
The German newspaper “Frankfurt Allgemeine Zeitung” quoted sources as saying that Kiev had officially asked Berlin to provide it with long-range “Taurus” cruise missiles.
The newspaper said: “President Volodymyr Zelensky already spoke about the issue of his country’s delivery of long-range missiles, during a meeting with Chancellor Olaf Scholz in Berlin in early May.
Although the Chancellor’s spokesman does not want to comment on the matter, the German Federal Ministry of Defense confirms that Ukraine has indeed asked to provide it with Taurus missiles.
Earlier, a German member of parliament, Roderich Kiswetter, called on his country’s government to provide Ukraine with cruise missiles of this type.
Taurus missile
- Air-to-surface cruise missile to be carried on board fighters, developed by the German-Swedish company of the same name.
- The missile’s range allows it to hit targets far from the current front line in eastern Ukraine.
- The missile is capable of hitting the Russian capital, Moscow.
#Ukraine #asks #Germany #provide #missiles #capable #hitting #Moscow