Berlin announces end to restrictions on long-range weapons supplied to Kyiv

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz announced an end to existing restrictions on long-range weapons being supplied to Kyiv by Berlin and its allies on German TV on Monday.

Speaking live at the Europa Forum, a discussion organised by the WDR channel, Merz said “There are no longer any restrictions on the range of weapons delivered to Ukraine, neither by the UK, France, nor us. There are no restrictions by the US either.”

Stressing the importance of supplying Kyiv with long-range weapons, Merz said “This means that Ukraine can now defend itself by attacking military facilities in Russia, for example.”

Breaking news channel the Clash Report speculated that Ukraine was now likely to receive German Taurus missiles, as well as older PAC-2 Patriot missiles.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is due to visit the German capital on Wednesday, Euronews announced, amid signs that Merz is proving to be a more robust ally to the Kyiv regime than his predecessor Olaf Scholz.

Ukraine had previously received long-range missiles from its Western allies, including ATACMS and Storm Shadow, but was initially banned from deploying them on targets within Russia until the US and UK lifted their restrictions on Ukraine firing long-range missiles into Russia in November.

Earlier in the month, a congressional official said that the US had also approved the transfer of 125 long-range artillery rockets and 100 Patriot air-defence missiles to Ukraine from Germany, The New York Times reported. Even though the weapons belonged to Germany, they were made in the US and thus required American government approval prior to export.