Germany considering whether to supply IRIS-T air defence system to Ukraine - source
13/05/2022 13:11
BERLIN, May 13 (Reuters) - Germany is considering supplying
IRIS-T SLM medium range surface-to-air defence systems to
Ukraine, a security source said on Friday.
German daily Bild had reported earlier that the German
cabinet's security council was discussing the matter, and that
IRIS-T SLM systems, made by privately held German weapons maker
Diehl Defense, could be deployed in Ukraine from November.
Ukraine's pleas for heavy weapons have intensified since
Moscow earlier this month turned its fiercest firepower on the
country's east and south, after failing to take the capital
Kyiv.
Germany last week said it would deliver seven self-propelled
howitzers to Ukraine, in a further reversal of a longtime policy
not to send heavy weapons to war zones due to the country's Nazi
past. urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL5N2WY1JF
According to Bild, Ukraine is interested in receiving 10
IRIS-T SLM systems, which could be manufactured over the next
three to four years. The paper said that the system can launch
missiles over a distance of 40 kilometres (25 miles) to take
down fighter jets, helicopters or missiles.
Training for Ukrainian soldiers could start as soon as the
German government has approved the plan, Bild said.
Russia calls its actions in Ukraine a "special military
operation" to disarm Ukraine and protect it from fascists.
Ukraine and the West say the fascist allegation is baseless and
that the war is an unprovoked act of aggression.
(Reporting by Sabine Siebold; Editing by Maria Sheahan and
Raissa Kasolowsky)
((maria.sheahan@thomsonreuters.com; +49 30 22013 3680;))