Germany is holding closed talks with India to buy shells for Ukraine - media
India has several hundred thousand rounds of ammunition that it can transfer to Germany through intermediaries
The German government is holding secret talks with India on the purchase of artillery shells for Ukraine, informed sources have told Der Spigel.
According to them, the discussions on this issue are taking place behind the scenes, as New Delhi does not want to sell weapons openly in order not to spoil relations with Moscow. In total, India has several hundred thousand rounds of ammunition that it can transfer to Germany through intermediaries.
Similar deals could be concluded with Arab countries, some of which also have large stockpiles of ammunition, Der Spiegel's sources say. Experts note that the necessary ammunition can also be found in Africa and the Balkans.
Berlin has stepped up its search for ammunition amid concerns from Germany's intelligence services that the Ukrainian Armed Forces may run out of shells before June. Germany has no shortage of money to buy shells for Kyiv – the German government has allocated €7 billion for this purpose in 2024 alone, says Christian Freuding, head of the Situation Centre for Ukraine at the German Ministry of Defence.
However, according to him, artillery and anti-aircraft munitions are "not widely available around the world".
By the end of February, the Ukrainian Armed Forces faced a shortage of ammunition, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said on 24 February. For every one shell fired by the Ukrainian Armed Forces, there are 10 Russian shells, a source in the SBU told The Wall Street Journal.
According to Der Spiegel, at a non-public meeting of Western intelligence services at the Munich Security Conference, it was said that the main goal for Ukraine in 2024 is defence. But to hold the front line and prevent Russian troops from breaking through into the country, Kyiv needs more ammunition and drones, Western intelligence officials said.
At the same Munich conference, Czech President Petr Pavel said that Prague had found sources to purchase 800,000 artillery rounds from countries outside the EU for Ukraine. According to the Financial Times, the EU is now urgently seeking $1.5 billion to buy them.
Background. Ukraine also signed a memorandum with Rheinmetall on joint production of ammunition.
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