German Foreign Minister calls for creating 'winter protective shield' over Ukraine
Photo: Annalena Baerbock, Foreign Minister of Germany (Getty Images)
Allies of Kyiv worldwide should create a "winter protective shield" over Ukraine to protect it from Russian attacks during the winter period, stated the German Foreign Minister, Annalena Baerbock.
"Russia again is aiming at civil infrastructure," she said on the sidelines of a meeting of NATO foreign ministers in Brussels.
Such attacks are intended to deprive Ukrainians of electricity and hot water during the winter, explained Baerbock.
Berlin has already provided Kyiv with generators and Patriot air defense systems, reported the head of the German foreign affairs department, urging other allies of Ukraine worldwide to follow this example.
Germany's assistance
Germany is one of the leading countries providing support to our troops. Berlin has supplied various types of artillery, Leopard tanks of both older and newer modifications, IRIS-T, and Patriot air defense systems, ammunition, vehicles, drones, and other types of weaponry.
In November, a spokesperson for the Air Force, Yurii Ihnat, announced that Ukraine would soon receive another Patriot air defense system from Germany. Currently, two divisions of this air defense system are on active duty and capable of intercepting ballistic missiles, including over Kyiv.
Challenging winter
Russia actively carried out massive attacks on Ukrainian energy infrastructure last year. Military officials warn that Russia is accumulating missiles for repeating such mass strikes. However, according to Ukrainian intelligence, the scale of the shelling is expected to be smaller this time.
As reported by the Financial Times, Ukraine is intensively preparing for possible mass strikes by the Russian army on its energy infrastructure. Ukrainian authorities believe that the country is better prepared for such attacks this time.
