Germany Decides to Send Weapons from Its Military to Ukraine | DW News

Feb 26, 2022 • The German military will send 1,000 anti-tank weapons and 500 "Stinger" class surface-to-air missiles to Ukraine amid the ongoing Russian invasion, the government announced. Government spokesman Steffen Hebestreit said the weapons would be delivered as soon as possible to support the Ukrainian military. Chancellor Olaf Scholz said it was Germany's "duty to support Ukraine to the best of its ability in defending itself against the invading army of Vladimir Putin."

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy praised Germany's decision to send weapons, in a major reversal of policy for Berlin. "Keep it up, Chancellor Olaf Scholz! Anti-war coalition in action!" Zelenskyy tweeted.

Earlier Saturday Berlin authorized NATO partners the Netherlands and Estonia arms deliveries to Ukraine. For the Netherlands, 400 German-made anti-tank weapons are involved, while Estonia was granted approval to sent artillery from old GDR (East German) stocks.

The move marks a major change of course for Germany, which had until now refused the delivery of lethal weapons to Ukraine due to its policy of not sending weapons to a conflict zone.

The Netherlands also said it would sent anti-tank weapons to Ukraine, according to the Dutch defense ministry.