Sebastian Schäfer, defense expert for the Green Party in the Bundestag, sharply criticized the arms company Rheinmetall for its lack of support for Ukraine.
“The Rheinmetall company has repeatedly made big announcements. A maintenance workshop should be opened in Lviv in the winter so that more complex repairs can be carried out on site in Ukraine,” said Schäfer to “Bild am Sonntag”.
This is important in order to be able to bring damaged German-made tanks such as the Leopard 2 or the Marder back to the front as quickly as possible. “Unfortunately, this workshop has so far remained an unfulfilled promise.” According to “Bild am Sonntag” information, only small defects on the Marder armored personnel carrier can so far be repaired in Lviv in western Ukraine.
According to Schäfer, there is also no progress with Rheinmetall’s planned ammunition factory in Ukraine: “The chairman of the board seems to be more concerned with maintaining the price of Rheinmetall shares than with effectively supporting Ukraine. “In this way, Rheinmetall is taking advantage of the shortage of artillery ammunition and imposing high prices.”
Schäfer has just spent almost a week traveling through Ukraine with colleagues from the SPD and FDP, where he spoke to the army command staff, ministers and arms chiefs. Rheinmetall did not want to comment when asked.