German-supplied equipment may be used in Ukraine's "completely legitimate" incursion into Russia's Kursk Oblast, the Bundestag's Defense Committee Chair Marcus Faber said on Aug. 8 after Russia claimed that German armored personnel vehicles were involved in the operation.
"With the handover to Ukraine, these are Ukrainian weapons," Faber told German newspaper Berliner Morgenpost, specifying that this applies to all material, including Leopard 2 tanks.
"With the Russian attack on Ukraine, the territory of both states is a war zone. The use of the weapons is subject to the provisions of international law."
Ukrainian forces crossed the border into Kursk Oblast on Aug. 6, resulting in clashes on Russian soil that were described by Russian President Vladimir Putin as "a large-scale provocation."
Kyiv has largely refused to comment on the operation in Kursk Oblast, which takes place just as Russia is ramping up attacks in Ukraine's Donetsk Oblast.
Faber also posted on X that Ukraine's incursion "forces Russia to withdraw forces from the east" and is "completely legitimate and makes military sense."
"Ukraine is proving its ability to act" and is showing the Russian population that Russia's "war of aggression concerns them too, not just the Ukrainians," he said.
"Anyone who starts a war of aggression against their neighboring country is also turning their own territory into a war zone."
"We can only wish the Ukrainian defenders every success, including in Kursk," Faber said.
"The more successful they are, the sooner the Kremlin will understand that there is nothing to be gained in Ukraine."
Initially a hesitant partner, Berlin has become Ukraine's second-largest military donor after the U.S., although German Chancellor Olaf Scholz is still reluctant to supply some key capabilities, namely Taurus long-range missiles.
Francis Farrell
