LONDON: Germany will launch a new “deep-strike initiative” to provide Ukraine with “several thousand long-range drones” to help it repel Russia’s invasion, Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said Tuesday.
At a meeting of Ukraine’s allies in London, Pistorius said Germany was “expanding Ukraine’s capabilities to weaken Russia’s war machinery in the hinterland, providing an effective defense.”
That includes boosting “support for the procurement of long-range drones with Ukraine’s defense industry,” he noted.
“As part of this initiative we are concluding a number of contracts with Ukrainian enterprises amounting to a total of 300 million euros” ($350 million), Pistorius said.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said in May, during a visit by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, that Berlin would help Kyiv develop new long-range weapons that can hit targets in Russian territory.
Merz said at the time that both countries’ defense ministers would sign a memorandum of understanding for the production of the long-range weapons systems, noting there would be no range restrictions on their use.
At Tuesday’s meeting of the 50-strong Ukraine Defense Contact Group, British Defense Minister John Healey said the UK would also continue sending one-way attack drones “vital for Ukraine’s defense.”
“Over the next 12 months, the UK will fund the delivery of thousands of long-range one-way attack drones, built in the UK, and supporting our 100-year partnership with Ukraine,” Healey told the meeting, which was partly virtual and partly in-person.
It follows UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Zelensky cementing a deal to jointly produce military drones during a UK visit by the Ukrainian leader in June.
A British announcement at the time said the pact aimed to deliver Ukraine “large numbers of battle-proven drones.”
London also announced in January that it would lead, alongside Latvia, an international coalition aiming to send 30,000 unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) to Ukraine, through the UK-led International Fund for Ukraine (IFU).
The fund, which receives donations from Ukraine’s allies and partners, procures priority military equipment, including air defense and artillery systems.
Updating allies on its progress, Healey said the fund had now raised more than £2 billion ($2.7 billion).
He added the “funding milestone... is symbolic of unity, with 11 countries working together with the UK to ensure Ukraine receives the urgent support it needs.”