“Rammstein-6”: what new weapons were given to Ukraine

On Wednesday, the sixth meeting of the contact group in the Ramstein format took place to discuss the provision of air defense equipment to Ukraine.

The fact that air defense is the main topic, in particular, was stated by Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov in his tweet.

Earlier, Volodymyr Zelensky called for accelerating the supply of modern air defense systems to Ukraine.

According to BBC, the meeting was chaired by Pentagon Chief Lloyd Austin and Chairman of the NATO Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley.

Austin noted that the massive missile attack on Ukraine by Russia earlier this week had further united the West in its determination to support Kyiv in this war.

He also called the successes of the Ukrainian Armed Forces counteroffensive extraordinary, which, according to him, changed the dynamics of the war.

“These are victories of brave Ukrainian soldiers. But the assistance of the contact group in provision, training and its support is vital,” the Pentagon chief noted.

During the meeting, the German Ministry of Defense promised that in the coming weeks it would provide Ukraine with new self-propelled howitzers and MARS II rocket launchers, an analogue of HIMARS on track.

“We are coordinating our assistance. In the next few weeks, new PzH2000 and MARS II will be handed over to Ukraine,” the ministry said in a tweet.

At the same time, the Dutch edition De Telegraaf writes that the country’s Defense Minister Kajsa Ollongren on Wednesday announced the provision of additional anti-aircraft missiles worth 15 million euros to Ukraine to strengthen the protection of the sky.

Neither Germany nor the Netherlands specified how many units of the announced weapons will be delivered to Ukraine.

Canadian Defence Minister Anita Anand announced at a meeting in Brussels that her country would send artillery shells, winter gear and cameras for drones to Ukraine for a total of $47 million. In addition, this package will include payment for satellite communications for Ukrainians.

There are also reports from many sources – not yet officially confirmed, however – that France has promised to give Ukraine three of its LRU M270 missile launchers, a modernized tracked version of the HIMARS, at the meeting of allies.

Also, the Committee of Permanent Representatives of the EU countries agreed to establish a military assistance mission for Ukraine with headquarters in Germany and Poland. Foreign Ministers of the EU countries should successfully start its work as soon as possible.

Since the start of the full-scale war in Ukraine, representatives of more than 50 NATO and EU countries, as well as from Africa and Asia, have been meeting in the contact group on Ukraine’s defence in the Rammstein format, named after the German city where they first met in April.

Author – Anastasiya Glotova, 13/10/2022