Germany will send Marder infantry fighting vehicles to Ukraine, official says

PABRADE, LITHUANIA - OCTOBER 26: A Marder infantry fighting vehicle of the Bundeswehr, the German armed forces, participates in the NATO Iron Wolf military exercises on October 26, 2022 in Pabrade, Lithuania. Germany leads a NATO contingent of troops in Lithuania under the Enhanced Forward Presence (eFP) battle group, with troops also from Belgium, the Czech Republic, the Netherlands, Luxembourg and Norway. (Photo by Sean Gallup/Getty Images)

Germany will provide Ukraine with Marder infantry fighting vehicles and an additional Patriot air defense battery, German ambassador to the US Emily Haber said on Thursday.

“Germany will provide Marder infantry fighting vehicles to #Ukraine️. We’ll also join the U.S. in supplying an additional Patriot air defense battery,” she wrote on Twitter.

The Marder is an infantry fighting vehicle used by the German military since the early 1970s but continuously upgraded. While the German military is in the process of phasing the vehicle out, hundreds are still in service.

An infantry fighting vehicle is a heavily armed armored vehicle used to move soldiers around the battlefield. It’s usually deployed together with main battle tanks.

German Vice Chancellor and Economy Minister Robert Habeck on Thursday hailed his government’s “logical” decision to send more military aid to Ukraine.

“This is a good decision. Since the beginning of the war, we have increasingly expanded our support in cooperation with our partners. It is logical that we also take this step. Ukraine has the right to defend itself against the Russian attack, and we have a duty to help it do so,” he said.