Germany to announce major arms deliveries to Ukraine at NATO summit

Germany will announce new support packages for Ukraine during the upcoming NATO summit in Vilnius, Lithuania, German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said Monday.

Meanwhile, the German government remains reluctant to deliver the Taurus cruise missiles because they can also reach Russian territory.

The preliminary work is practically completed, Pistorius said during a joint press conference with his French counterpart Sebastien Lecornu in Berlin.

Pistorius added that he expects the NATO summit will be "very united" and that it "must be, in light of the current situation."

Germany is already the second most important arms supplier to Ukraine after the US. Chancellor Olaf Scholz had promised Ukraine a weapons package worth €2.7 billion ($2.95 billion) during Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's visit to Berlin in mid-May. This included 20 more Marder infantry fighting vehicles, 30 Leopard 1 tanks, and 4 Iris-T SLM anti-aircraft systems.

The German arms maker Rheinmetall today announced it will deploy production facilities for armored vehicles in Ukraine over the next 12 weeks.

As for Ukraine's accession to NATO, Germany remains hesitant, opposing the quick membership plan for the state to not provoke an escalation of Russia's war. 31 member states will not invite Ukraine to join the alliance at the NATO summit in Vilnius.