Germany Defence subsidiary seeks govt permission to send 100 Marder vehicles to Ukraine

German Defence subsidiary Rheinmetall on Friday sought for permission to supply 100 Marder-type infantry fighting vehicles to Ukrianian forces to counter Russia’s assaults as the war enters the deadlier second phase. The defence firm has applied for the deal approval with the federal government of Germany, the newspaper Welt am Sonntag reported. The request was officially received by German Ministry of Economics and was transferred to the Federal Security Council that includes key decision makers German chancellor Olaf Scholz and the Ministers of Foreign Affairs, the Interior, Defence, Finance, the Economy, Economic Cooperation and Justice. This is the first such application received by the German government since Russia’s invasion on February 24  against its neighbouring state. 

In the application, Rheinmetall Landsysteme urged that it is ready to sell the Marder-type infantry to the Ukraine forces “as soon as possible.” This comes as the Deputy Inspector General of the German Bundeswehr Markus Laubenthal rejected proposal to supply Ukraine with heavy weaponry or defence equipment to avoid escalating the armed conflict between Russia and Ukraine, unlike the rest of the Europe. The firm states that the first batch of the infantry vehicles can be received by Ukraine in a matter of just a few weeks.

The supply, the company stressed, will be in line with the obligations of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO). Expressing skepticism, Marcus Laubenthal meanwhile told the public broadcaster ZDF that Germany is still considering whether or not to approve such a request as there will be “nothing left in the Bundeswehr for the NATO Rapid Reaction Force if support is needed.” 

German Defence Ministry rejected proposal to backfill infantry vehicles 

Marder vehicles of the German infantry are operated by the German Army. They are the main weapon of the Panzergrenadiere (mechaniSed infantry) since the 1970s in Berlin. “The sealed hull is welded from the different kinds of up 30 mm thick armor-clad sheets, capable of protecting the front from 20 mm and 25 mm bullets from a distance of 200 m, and from the sides – from shrapnel, small 7.62 mm arms,” Bild reported. Initially, the defence equipment manufacturing firm proposed to the German government a scheme through which the Marder infantry fighting vehicles could have been immediately delivered over to Ukrainian forces. 

But this would mean that the vehicles would have to be shipped from the available supplies of the German Armed Forces. The proposal was rejected by the German Defence Ministry. Bundeswehr even made an offer to be compensated for the lost amount with new samples. Rheinmetall had also asked to purchase the four million units of ammunition for the BMP from the German Defence Ministry but there was allegedly “no response” from the German government. 

Image: AP