Germany to supply Ukraine with long-range missiles 'very soon,' Merz says
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Germany will provide Ukraine with new long-range missiles "very shortly, very soon," German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said on July 17, without mentioning the name of the weapons being supplied.
"Ukraine will be much better positioned and use these systems and get the support of us with regard to those systems in the weeks and months to come," Merz said.
German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius previously said Berlin will not supply Ukraine with Taurus cruise missiles, but will provide Kyiv with Patriot air defense systems purchased from the U.S. Kyiv has long sought the long-range missile as Russia continues to wage its war.
Weeks prior, Berlin had previously said it would consider sending its long-range Taurus missiles to Ukraine.
The Taurus missile is capable of striking targets at a distance of 500 kilometers (300 miles) — a range greater than other long-range weapons Ukraine has received from allies.
On July 9, Merz promised further assistance to Kyiv, noting that diplomatic means for resolving the Russia-Ukraine war "have been exhausted."
"When a criminal regime openly questions another country’s right to exist with military force and sets out to destroy the political order of freedom on the entire European continent, the federal government I lead will do everything in its power to prevent this," he said.
Under a German-financed agreement, Ukraine will receive hundreds of domestically produced long-range weapon systems by the end of July, German Major General Christian Freuding said on July 11.
The U.S. has also promised to supply Kyiv with Patriot air defense systems in a new deal brokered by NATO.
On July 17, U.S. Ambassador to NATO Matthew Whitaker said Washington was working to speed up weapons deliveries to Ukraine in coordination with the defense alliance.
