Problems with German railway workers have slowed the supply of ammunition from the United States to Ukraine, US media report.
Last year, U.S. ammunition shipments to Ukraine were delayed by at least two months due to problems with the U.S. military contract with German rail company Deutsche Bahn, according to the Pentagon. According to the report, “multiple delays” occurred between December 2022 and January 2023, around the same time Ukraine began to run out of US-supplied ammunition.
“This is one of several cases where a shortage of American aid has affected the Ukrainian military since the large-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022.” – points out the publication “Defense number one”.
According to a report by the German Council on Foreign Relations, the German rail network’s ability to transport military cargo is hampered by “extensive bureaucracy, insufficient investment in infrastructure and a shortage of flatcars for military cargo.” Military shipments must also compete with commercial cargo, the report notes. While the German military has signed an agreement until 2023 to reserve 343 platforms, Deutsche Bahn Cargo will find it difficult to do more due to the reservation of commercial traffic.
