Germany, Sweden will send 7,000 anti-tank weapons to Ukraine

According to RT, both countries have sent Ukraine a lot of anti-tank weapons.

Swedish Foreign Minister Ann Linde said Sweden would send 5,000 anti-tank weapons to Ukraine in addition to the 5,000 it had previously sent.

Meanwhile, German Defense Minister Christine Lambrecht ordered the armed forces to supply Ukraine with 2,000 shoulder-fired anti-tank grenade launchers from the country’s stockpile.

The German army lacked ammunition, equipment and even boots. German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock told German lawmakers that although the country’s military lacks supplies, the government will push weapons manufacturers to deliver more.

Both countries pledged to increase defense spending after the outbreak of war in Ukraine. Sweden has steadily increased its military budget since 2014 and recently announced it would increase spending to 2% of GDP as soon as possible, about a third of the current level.

Last month, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz also announced that it would increase defense spending to 2% of GDP and invest $113 billion in weapons, such as Israeli drones and US F-35 fighter jets.

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) has mandated its members to spend a minimum of 2% of GDP on defense, a goal many countries fall short of.

Unlike Germany, Sweden is not a member of NATO and its government has said it intends to remain outside the alliance.

It remains unclear when and how Germany and Sweden will deliver weapons to Ukraine.

Earlier, on March 19, Canadian Defense Minister Anita Anand admitted that Canada had exhausted its arsenal after providing aid to Ukraine. Canada is one of the Western countries that have supplied Kiev with lethal weapons. So far, the country has sent or is sending 4,500 rocket launchers, 7,500 hand grenades, 100 anti-tank launchers with 2,000 rounds, two C-130J multirole transport aircraft and many others.

Canadian Defense Minister Anita Anand announced that in addition to sending anti-tank weapon systems, ammunition and defense equipment such as armor and night vision equipment, Canada will also send 1,600 bulletproof vests and about 400,000 Individual meal packages.

Meanwhile, Russia has announced that it will consider military supply convoys entering Ukraine as a legitimate target.

Earlier, according to TASS news agency, Alexey Polishchuk – Director of the Department of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) of the Russian Foreign Ministry – warned of the danger when NATO supplies weapons to Ukraine. Polishchuk stressed that NATO’s supply of weapons to Ukraine creates an unacceptable risk that could lead to a conflict between Russia and this military alliance.

On the same day, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova warned NATO member countries against sending mercenaries to Ukraine, saying that this action could be an accomplice to war crimes.

Meanwhile, arms company AMMO (USA) on March 5 announced that it would send a shipment of 1 million rounds to Kiev. AMMO CEO Fred Wagenhals said the company is waiting for the US Government to approve this shipment of 1 million rounds, worth $ 700,000, and has its own plane ready for delivery.