Spiegel: Germany to send 2.7 billion euros in record military aid package to Ukraine

Germany is preparing to provide Ukraine with a record military aid package worth 2.7 billion euros to Ukraine, Spiegel reported on May 13, citing undisclosed government sources.

The aid could include 20 Marder armored personnel carriers, 30 Leopard 1 tanks, 18 wheeled howitzers, four more IRIS-T air defense systems, and hundreds of guided missiles for this system, according to Spiegel.

Germany also reportedly plans to deliver up to 200 reconnaissance drones, 100 armored combat vehicles to transport troops to the front, and more than 100 logistical support vehicles.

The package would be the largest military aid promised by Germany to Ukraine since the beginning of the full-scale invasion. It could be approved in the next weeks or months, Spiegel reported.

President Volodymyr Zelensky may travel to Berlin on May 13 at the invitation of German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, as reported by the German newspaper Der Tagesspiegel.

The media says Berlin police have confirmed that the preparations for Zelensky’s visit have started.

According to Der Tagesspiegel, on May 14, Zelensky will be "officially received with military honors" by Scholz, followed by a press conference and talks with German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier.

Then, Zelensky is expected to fly to Aachen, “where he will be honored with the Charlemagne Prize,” which “has been awarded since 1950 to personalities who have contributed to the unity of Europe,” the media reported.

Zelensky has not commented on the trip yet.

German media: Berlin to approve Polish transfer of ex-East German fighter jets to Ukraine

The German government has decided to approve Poland’s request to give Ukraine Soviet-era MiG-29 fighter jets that had originally belonged to the East German air force before reunification, German newspaper Süddeutsche Zeitung reported on April 12, citing sources in government circles.

Kyiv IndependentThe Kyiv Independent news desk