Germany Europeans want to help Ukrainian defense industry
Germany and four major European partners want to strengthen the Ukrainian arms industry in the defense campaign against Russia.
14.01.2025, 05:23
SDA
"If the money is there, if the armament capacities for production are there, then Ukraine itself is the quickest to supply its own troops with material and weapons," said Defense Minister Boris Pistorius (SPD) at the end of a meeting with his colleagues from Poland, France, Great Britain and Italy in a suburb of the Polish capital Warsaw.
Poland's Defense Minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz said that the possibilities for cooperation with Ukraine in arms production had not yet been exhausted. This was also discussed with the Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustem Umerov, who was connected via video. They discussed cooperation between several partner companies to develop production capacities in European countries as well as joint initiatives with Ukraine.
New format established after Trump's election victory
"2025 must be the year of the expansion of the defense industry in Europe," said Kosiniak-Kamysz. Europe must show unity, not only in citing common values, but also in implementing these values.
The five-way format with the meetings of European defense ministers was established after Donald Trump's victory in the US presidential election in November. The aim is to strengthen European security and defense readiness. Trump has repeatedly given rise to doubts about the reliability of the USA under his leadership in the alliance. It is unclear, for example, whether and how the United States will continue to provide military support to Ukraine after he takes office on January 20.
"We don't need mediators, we need allies"
A few hours before the meeting in Warsaw, Pistorius presented the Ukrainian ambassador Oleksii Makeiev with the first new wheeled howitzer of the type RCH 155, which was manufactured in Germany and is intended to make it possible to fire from a moving vehicle for the first time.
"Ukraine, and this is the signal, can count on us. And Germany is ready to assume responsibility in Europe," said Pistorius in Kassel, where the tank manufacturer KNDS - a merger of the traditional German company KMW and the French armaments company Nexter - produces the weapon system. The first 6 of the 54 wheeled howitzers promised are to remain in Germany for the time being and be used to train Ukrainian soldiers.
"We don't need mediators, we need allies," said Makeiev with a view to possible negotiations on an end to the war. Peace must be fought for. It was good to know that Germany was on Ukraine's side.
Will civilian flight operations resume in Lviv?
Meanwhile, the fighting between the Ukrainian and Russian armed forces continues. Nevertheless, civilian flight operations may soon resume at Lviv International Airport in the far west of Ukraine. "We are considering the possibility of allowing civil aviation flights during martial law, provided that all safety requirements for aircraft, passengers and infrastructure are met," the airport administration announced on Facebook. Documents for the evacuation of passengers already exist and the airport's civilian infrastructure has always been kept in operational condition.
Currently, the airspace over Ukraine, against which Russia has been waging a destructive war of aggression for almost three years, is closed to civil aviation. All civil airports are closed and all traffic and transportation is being handled by road and rail.
New twist in the dispute between Kiev and Bratislava
Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Slovakian Prime Minister Robert Fico are looking for ways to settle the dispute between the two neighboring countries, which has been ongoing since Christmas. The reason for this was Kiev's decision to stop the transit of Russian natural gas, which has no longer been routed to Europe since the beginning of the year. Fico therefore made a surprise visit to Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin in Moscow and later threatened to stop electricity supplies to Ukraine.
In view of the resulting mutual accusations and threats, which both sides have been hurling at each other for weeks, Fico has now invited the Ukrainian head of state to Slovakia for a discussion. In an "open letter" to Zelenskyi published by the government office in Bratislava, the Prime Minister, who has been mocked by critics as a left-wing populist friend of Russia, reminded them that Slovakia has always supported its neighboring country. Zelenskyi should use the newly opened direct rail link from Kiev to Slovakia for his visit.
The Ukrainian responded with a counter-invitation on Platform X. "OK, then come to Kiev on Friday," was his brief response to Fico's suggestion, written in English.
In Fico's view, the Ukrainian transit ban on Russian gas not only harms Slovakia, but also the EU and Ukraine itself. He appealed to the Ukrainian side to take part in talks on this at EU level. Slovakia also offers itself as a host for Ukrainian-Russian peace negotiations.
What will be important on Tuesday
Following several suspected acts of sabotage on the open sea, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and the heads of state and government of other NATO states will discuss security in the Baltic Sea region on Tuesday. At a summit in the Finnish capital Helsinki, the main aim is to find ways to better protect critical infrastructure in the Baltic Sea and counter the threat posed by the so-called Russian shadow fleet. This refers to ships that Russia uses to circumvent sanctions imposed as a result of the invasion of Ukraine, for example when transporting oil.
