Germany Delivers Another IRIS-T Air Defense System To Ukraine
On May 24, the German Ministry of Defense (Bundesministerium der Verteidigung) announced on its X account that the Ukrainian Armed Forces had received the additional IRIS-T air defense system that the Berlin government had promised to provide last month to assist Kiev in meeting its air defense requirements. With the newest delivery, the Ukrainian Armed Forces’ inventory now includes five IRIS-T systems, four of which are medium-range (40 kilometers) and one of which is short-range (12 kilometers).
In his statement on the latest military support to the Ukrainian Armed Forces, German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius stated that the IRIS-T air defense systems produced directly by German industry are cutting-edge and proven. The Minister emphasized that Russia has been increasing its air strikes against Ukraine for months, killing people and destroying critical infrastructure, and that IRIS-T, along with the recently delivered PATRIOT system, will counter its brutal aggression, which violates international law. Pistorius also emphasized Germany’s determination to strengthen Ukraine’s air defenses.
Germany, the second-largest provider of military aid to Ukraine after the United States, has delivered or allocated €28 billion ($30 billion) in weapons to Kiev since the start of the war. A significant portion of this military aid is for air defense systems, which Ukraine requires to defend its cities and critical infrastructure from Russian aggression. In addition to IRIS-T, these systems include Patriot air defense systems, TRML-4D air surveillance radars, Gepard self-propelled anti-aircraft guns, the Skynex air defense system, Stinger MANPADS, and Strela MANPADS. Germany has also committed to providing Ukraine with additional IRIS-T and Patriot systems in the future.
In addition to the support mentioned above, Germany is spearheading the ‘Immediate Action on Air Defense’ (IAAD) initiative, which was launched last April. Belgium, the Netherlands, and Canada have all contributed financially to this initiative, which aims to swiftly find and deliver the air defense systems and ammunition required by Ukraine. Following the 22nd online meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group (UDCG, also known as the Ramstein Group) last week, the German Ministry of Defense announced that the United States, United Kingdom, France, Spain, Norway, Denmark, Belgium, Romania, Lithuania, and Latvia also intend to provide equipment and missiles to support the initiative.