By Stefanie Dazio and Barry Hatton
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz pledged Wednesday to help Ukraine develop its own long-range missile systems that would be free of any Western-imposed limitations on their use and targets as the Kyiv government fights to repel Russia’s invasion.
Some of the advanced weapon systems that Kyiv’s allies supplied to Ukraine during the 3-year-old war were subject to range and target restrictions — a fraught political issue stemming from fears that if the weapons struck deep inside Russia, the Kremlin might retaliate against the country that provided them and draw NATO into Europe’s biggest conflict since World War II.
Standing beside visiting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Merz said that under an intensified cooperation agreement, Germany “will strive to equip the Ukrainian army with all the capabilities that truly enable it to successfully defend the country,” including upgraded domestic missile production.
After the United States, Germany has been the biggest
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