Germany will supply a new Patriot air defense system to Ukraine, Chancellor Olaf Scholz announced on Thursday.
Speaking to reporters after his meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, on the sidelines of an EU summit, Scholz said Ukraine needs to strengthen its air defense ahead of the upcoming winter.
“I told the Ukrainian president here that we will provide Ukraine with another (Patriot) system for the winter months. That is what is needed most right now,” he said.
“We should expect that Russia will try to target all possible infrastructure during the winter months with missile and drone attacks,” he added.
Both Scholz and Zelenskyy attended the European Political Community in Granada, which was hosted by the Spanish government.
While pledging continued military support to Ukraine, Scholz spoke cautiously about Kyiv’s request for long-range Taurus missiles.
“We must always take into account what the constitution tells us, and what our options are. We have to ensure that there is no escalation of the war, and that Germany does not become part of the conflict,” he said.
Despite growing pressure from Ukraine, Berlin has not agreed yet to deliver Taurus missiles, fearing that they can be used to attack targets in Russia, and make Germany a party to the conflict.
Since the war began in February 2022, Germany provided €22 billion ($24 billion) in financial support to Ukraine, including €12 billion ($13 billion) in military aid.
The military assistance included advanced weapons and equipment such as Leopard 2 battle tanks, Gepard anti-aircraft tanks, Marder combat vehicles, and Patriot and IRIS-T air defense systems.