Ramstein Conference
Pistorius: New help for Kyiv
Boris Pistorius during deliberations of the US-led Ukraine Contact Group at the US air base in Ramstein. photo
© Uwe Anspach/dpa
Ukraine’s defense against Russia has become more difficult. Kyiv lacks ammunition. Germany is upping the ante again. According to Minister Pistorius, “everything has been said” in the Taurus debate.
According to Pistorius, the value of the German package is around 500 million euros, which means that Germany would already have provided support worth seven billion euros to Kiev this year. Also part of the package are 100 armored vehicles for the infantry and 100 transport vehicles, as Pistorius said. The 500 million euros include money that Germany is giving to a Czech ammunition initiative and will thus finance the purchase of 180,000 pieces of artillery ammunition. Germany also wants to contract 100,000 pieces of ammunition nationally. “Here, too, extradition to Ukraine is scheduled to begin this year,” explained the minister. The 180,000 pieces are medium-term help from the summer, the 100,000 pieces are long-term help.
“It has now been 755 days since Russia has waged war against the entire Ukraine, in violation of international law, brutally and ruthlessly,” said Pistorius. “The Ukrainians are not only defending themselves here, not only their own territorial independence and their freedom, but they are also fighting, and this is important, so that it is not the law of the strongest that prevails, but the strength of the law.” The vehicles are intended to strengthen mobility on the battlefield and logistical endurance.
Austin: For the long-term future of Ukraine
US Defense Secretary Austin invited defense ministers and military officials from around 50 countries to the meeting in Ramstein in southwest Germany. Austin promised Ukraine continued international support. “Our message today is clear: The United States will not let Ukraine fail, this coalition will not let Ukraine fail, and the free world will not let Ukraine fail.” It’s about a shared commitment to the long-term future of Ukraine.
“Let’s not kid ourselves,” Austin emphasized. Russian President Vladimir Putin will not stop at Ukraine. “But as President (Joe) Biden said, Ukraine can stop Putin – if we stand with Ukraine and provide what it needs to defend itself.” Ukraine will also be helped to build a future army. Austin spoke of so-called capability coalitions, in which several countries work together on drones, for example.
With regard to the stalled US aid, Austin said: “I continue to see strong support for Ukraine in both houses of Congress.” He is optimistic that there will be progress. On the battlefield, the Russians made “a series of incremental gains.” But people in Ukraine are confident that they can maintain the defense of the area. Support is needed for this, which is why the US Congress must pass the aid. The USA has been considered Kiev’s most important ally since the beginning of Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine. The US government delivered weapons and ammunition on a large scale – but right-wing Republicans in the House of Representatives are currently blocking further aid.
Criticism from the Chancellor
In the debate about a delivery of Taurus cruise missiles to Kiev, “everything has been said,” said Pistorius. “The discussion has been conducted, there is no new state of knowledge.” He warned against losing sight of Ukraine’s essential needs. Sufficient artillery ammunition, longer-range rocket artillery and air defense are the really existential questions, he said on Deutschlandfunk. Pistorius also met his Ukrainian colleague Rustem Umjerow in Ramstein.
Meanwhile, Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) sharply criticized the debate that has been going on for weeks about German support for Ukraine. “The debate in Germany cannot be surpassed in terms of ridiculousness,” he said on Tuesday at the Europe 2024 conference in Berlin. “This is embarrassing for us as a country.” At the end of February, Scholz clearly rejected a Tauris delivery to Ukraine, triggering a heated debate in which, in addition to the Union, the coalition partners the Greens and the FDP opposed him.
Before the meeting in Ramstein, the Ministry of Defense in Kiev had stated that obtaining additional air defense systems plus missiles and long-range missile systems was a priority. Normally it also involves artillery shells, especially in the NATO caliber 155 millimeters, modern systems for electronic warfare and reconnaissance as well as armored technology.
Russia has been waging a war of aggression against neighboring Ukraine since February 24, 2022. The West is supporting Kiev’s defense with, among other things, extensive arms deliveries.