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Weapons deliveries to Ukraine are running at full speed again after the yes vote from the USA. In Germany, however, a promise to Kiev is not making progress.
Flensburg – Weapons deliveries to Kiev are really starting up again. In the past few days, Lithuania has sent Ukraine its only fighter jet, the L-39ZA “Albatross” light combat aircraft with two integrated twin machine cannons.
Weapons for Ukraine: Problems with planned delivery from Germany
The military aid of 61 billion dollars from the USA, which was recently approved by Congress, is almost unimaginably larger. Like the British one Guardian wrote on Tuesday (April 23), Great Britain has now put together an arms package worth 3.7 billion US dollars in the Ukraine war. Among other things, there are said to be 160 armored vehicles of the “Husky” type.
With regard to such armored transport vehicles, which are intended (at best) to protect against insidious mines, there is currently a lot of guesswork in Germany surrounding an announced delivery of weapons to the Ukrainian army, which should actually be much further advanced. This is what she reports Picture.
Ukraine War: Germany actually wanted to deliver dozens of FFG MRAP
Specifically: According to the report, Kiev and Flensburger Fahrzeugbau GmbH (FFG) from Schleswig-Holstein had concluded a contract for a total of 400 heavily armored MRAP vehicles. Financed by Berlin. MRAP stands for “Mine Resistant Ambush Protected Vehicle”, i.e. vehicles whose armor is intended to protect the crew inside from the explosion of an anti-tank mine – for example on roads. In keeping with this, it is the FFG MRAP, which according to the Picturereport “should have a level of protection in accordance with STANAG 4569 Level 2 (ballistic) and mine protection in accordance with STANAG 4569 Level 2 a+b”.
Smaller and/or older anti-tank grenades, which Russia often used in the Ukraine war, could also be stopped by the armor. At least that's the theory. But there are probably a lot of problems in realizing the scenario, while at the same time the Kremlin regime is actually having Vladimir Putin's downed Leopard 2 tanks demonstrated. The key problem: As of April 23, not a single FFG MRAP had reportedly been handed over to the Ukrainian armed forces. Boris Pistorius' (SPD) Federal Ministry of Defense said this Picture confirmed, the report says.
Losses in the war with Russia: Ukrainians are losing more and more Western tanks
A look at the list of military support services from the traffic light federal government showed on Tuesday evening (as of 5 p.m.) that not a single MRAP vehicle from Flensburg had actually been listed under “delivered”, while the Ukrainians were countering more and more Western tanks such as the M1 Abrams Putin's Russian invasion forces lose on the battlefield.
As the Picture Meanwhile, the start of delivery for the FFG MRAPs has been postponed from January to May 2024. This means that “only” 100 copies can be handed over to Kiev this year instead of 200 as originally planned. The Ukrainians desperately need every MRAP available to protect their own infantry against the Russians' dangerous traps. Germany had already handed over 66 FFG APCs (see photo in the tweet above), but these are not so heavily armored and therefore “only” protect against small arms fire on the battlefield, which had sparked strong criticism among Ukrainian military bloggers.
MRAP military vehicles from Germany: Huge costs for the Ukraine war
What went wrong in the timely preparation of the FFG MRAP is currently unknown. According to the report, unspecified certificates are missing. One of the vehicles costs loudly Picture Incidentally, 787,500 euros, roughly the same as a newly built house with a garden in an urban area that is considered attractive.
The total volume of the order from the traffic light coalition made up of the SPD, Greens and FDP to the FFG is said to be 315 million euros. For comparison: The Canadian defense manufacturer Roshel says it can produce equivalent MRAP vehicles for 375,000 euros each. (pm)
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