German defence contractor Rheinmetall is preparing further tanks for transport to Ukraine, with the company announcing on Tuesday that it had received an order from the German Ministry of Defence for 20 Marder infantry fighting vehicles.
The vehicles are to be delivered to the country under attack by Russia by the end of July, the company said at its production site in Unterlüß in the northern state of Lower Saxony.
Forty Marder vehicles have already been delivered, 20 of them from Rheinmetall and 20 from the stocks of the German armed forces, the Bundeswehr. In addition, Rheinmetall is offering 60 more Marder, which still have to be refurbished.
The Marder has been used by the Bundeswehr since the early 1970s. It is gradually being replaced by the successor tank, the Puma. For Ukraine, Rheinmetall is refurbishing old tanks so that they are suitable for front-line use.
Also by the end of July, the first batch of 10,000 rounds of 35-millimetre ammunition for the Gepard (Cheetah) anti-aircraft tank, which is urgently needed in Ukraine, is to be shipped. Rheinmetall has a contract to supply a total of 300,000 rounds.
Rheinmetall also wants to manufacture Fuchs (Fox) transport tanks in the Eastern European state.
