More should be done to help Ukraine, - German government spokesperson Hebestreit
Germany called on its European partners to increase assistance to Ukraine.
This was stated by the spokesman of the Federal Government Steffen Hebestreit, Censor.NET reports with reference to Ukrinform.
"We need to do more to help Ukraine in everything it does," he said during a briefing.
He noted that German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said a few weeks ago that the war was currently in a critical phase and asked his colleagues to take an inventory of what else they could donate.
Germany has set aside about €7.5 billion in its budget for the purchase of military equipment and ammunition for Ukraine this year (almost twice as much as in the previous year). Currently, Germany's share in the supply of military equipment to Ukraine exceeds half of the total provided by the EU. Berlin also expects its European partners to increase their share, as the current amount of aid will not be enough, given the situation in Ukraine, Hebestreit said.
According to him, Chancellor Scholz has been reiterating this position in telephone conversations with many colleagues from EU countries, and this topic will be one of the main ones at the EU summit on 1 February.
German Ministry of Defence spokesman Arno Kollatz added that with regard to ammunition, Germany and its partners were able to find opportunities to increase production capabilities, including at German enterprises. He specified that a so-called coalition of capabilities has been created under the leadership of Germany and France in the area of air defence. Within its framework, several countries will help Ukraine in the medium and long term to strengthen its air defence and strengthen coordination with NATO.
