Pistorius responded to additional requests from Ukraine for air defense missiles.
According to the German minister, Germany has already made a “disproportionately large contribution” to the transfer of Patriot systems to Ukraine, donating more than a third of its own capacities.
Therefore, further deliveries are impossible, since the Bundeswehr is waiting to replace the systems transferred to Ukraine and at the same time must maintain the ability to train personnel and maintain these systems, Pistorius explained.
He admitted that the number of IRIS-T air defense systems supplied to Ukraine is insufficient.
As Pistorius emphasized, Germany remains the only country that can supply these systems to Ukraine, and does so “in a certain sense on an ongoing basis.”
However, previous supplies are still not enough due to the increasing intensity of Russian air attacks, the head of the German Defense Ministry added.
Pistorius called on Ukraine's Western allies to take inventory of their own weapons stockpiles, especially in those countries that may still have available reserves.
