"Germany delivers the first of four IRIS-T SLM air defense systems to Ukraine," says the statement of the German Ministry of Defense published earlier today, as missiles struck Ukrainian cities.
Minister Christine Lambrecht said the first IRIS-T will arrive in Ukraine "in the next few days", and the other three systems promised by Germany would follow in 2023.
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"The renewed missile fire on Kyiv and many other cities makes it clear how important it is to deliver air defense systems to Ukraine quickly," said Lambrecht as quoted by Spiegel.
The IRIS-T is an important component of the echeloned air defense Ukraine is trying to build in order to protect its territories from russian air raids and missile strikes, becoming the first missile in the Ukrainian army operating in the medium range, along with American NASAMS, which will arrive later.
As a reminder, according to the previous statements, the first IRIS-T was expected by the end of October, and the rest of delivery completed in early 2023. The deadlines for the delivery differed from one German official to another, from August to vague "by the end of 2022".
Read more: Ukraine Seeking to Create a Three-Tier Air Defense and Boost Military Industry – Defense Minister Reznikov on "Ramstein-5" Results
