Taurus missiles won't change Russia-Ukraine war - Rheinmetall head
Photo: Armin Papperger (Getty Images)
The decisive factor in the Russian-Ukrainian war is not long-range missiles, but conventional artillery, says Armin Papperger, director of the German defense concern Rheinmetall.
Papperger is skeptical about the supply of Taurus cruise missiles to Ukraine. He says it doesn't change anything in the war, Taurus is not capable of changing the course of the game.
He believes the game is changed by classic artillery ammunition. Only with their help can Ukraine keep the Russians at bay.
Papperger said that Rheinmetall will produce significantly more artillery shells in Unterlüss (Lower Saxony) than previously planned. He said instead of 200,000 shells, they will be able to produce up to 350,000 artillery shells there. For this, we have invested a total of about 600 million euros in the company.
Unterlüß will become the second largest artillery plant in Europe, after a plant in Spain, where it is planned to produce 450,000 shells per year.
Rearmament of Europe
Papperger believes that rearmament in Europe is irreversible, as Rheinmetall only concludes long-term contracts. The defense concern's CEO says everyone wants factories, and they can build them
Papperger expects Rheinmetall to receive orders worth 300 billion euros over the next five years. He says by 2030, Europe's budget could grow to one trillion euros. About half of this amount will go to investments.
Taurus missiles to Ukraine
The future German Chancellor Merz said that he was ready to support the transfer of Taurus cruise missiles to Ukraine. According to him, Ukraine could use the missiles to strike the Crimean bridge.
The current Chancellor, Olaf Scholz, who is leaving office soon, opposed the decision for a long time.
