‘Germany has handed over dozens of non-combat-ready armored vehicles to Ukraine at an inflated price’ – Bild investigation

Germany supplied Ukraine with combat-unfit APCs at inflated prices.

This was reported by the German tabloid Bild based on its own investigation.

At the end of May, the authorities of the Federal Republic of Germany announced the delivery of 66 APCs to Ukraine, produced by the German concern FFG. These 10-ton APCs were developed in the USA, their original name being BATT UMG. The vehicles are produced in various countries worldwide under American license.

Deliveries began in October, and the Ukrainian Armed Forces received a total of 48 vehicles. According to Bild, they turned out to be completely unsuitable for action on the front lines in Ukraine and in general for use in combat conditions due to thin armor and the absence of mine-resistant and blast-resistant armor against artillery, missile, and mortar fire. The supplied APCs only protect against small arms and are suitable for rear operations.

As military expert Julian Röpke of Bild found out, the German Ministry of Defense initially chose between light vehicles from FFG and heavy Fuchs vehicles from the German defense conglomerate Rheinmetall. The former were chosen “as the most economical solution, which was also quickly available.” The German Ministry of Defense refers to Kyiv, saying that “Ukraine did not demand reinforced mine protection at that time.” An anonymous Ukrainian official told Bild that, “of course, we would like vehicles with mine protection,” but “the German side did not offer them.”

The newspaper’s investigation showed that the German FFG subcontracted the entire order for all 66 vehicles to the American contractor The Armoured Group (TAG). As a result, all APCs were assembled at the TAG plant in the UAE. From there, the armored vehicles were delivered to Ukraine, but not a single APC was assembled in Germany.

Moreover, there was actually no saving. The contract prices were inflated threefold: on the world market, APCs from TAG cost around 200,000 euros, while the German Ministry of Defense paid 600,000 euros per unit of equipment.

German experts and politicians have already reacted to the results of Bild’s investigation. For instance, military expert and professor at the Bundeswehr University in Munich, Carlo Masala, stated that “if it turns out that only lightly armored vehicles were delivered to Ukraine, it will be a pure scandal of procurement. Lives were saved here at the cost of human lives.”

In turn, Member of the Bundestag and foreign policy expert of the CDU party, Roderich Kiesewetter, after learning that the German authorities overpaid for the contract, called for both an internal investigation by the German Ministry of Defense and an external audit by the Federal Audit Office.

“If it turns out that substandard armored vehicles were purchased and delivered to Ukraine at a price almost three times higher than the usual market price, this is already doubly problematic. Firstly, meager transitional funds are being burned unnecessarily. Secondly, this is done on the shoulders and at the expense of the risks of Ukrainian soldiers,” said Kiesewetter.