Germany to produce ammo for air defense guns sent to Ukraine
Germany's defense minister says a deal has been signed for new ammunition for self-propelled anti-aircraft guns it provided to Ukraine to be produced at home after it ran into difficulties securing supplies from elsewhere
BERLIN (AP) — Germany has signed a deal for new ammunition for self-propelled anti-aircraft guns it provided to Ukraine to be produced at home after it ran into difficulties securing supplies from elsewhere, the defense minister said Tuesday.
Germany has supplied 32 of the Gepard anti-aircraft guns since it first agreed to send them to Ukraine in late April, and has pledged 37 in total. The German military hasn't used them since 2012, so they came from stocks held in reserve by the defense industry.
Securing more ammunition for the guns has been a challenge, a matter of mounting concern as defense against repeated barrages of Russian missile and drone strikes has become a top priority for Kyiv.
Germany so far has been unsuccessful in months of efforts to persuade neutral Switzerland to approve exports to Ukraine of stockpiles in the Alpine country of Gepard ammunition, which was manufactured there by a subsidiary of German defense company Rheinmetall.
