The tabloid Bild has reported that Panzerhaubitze 2000 self-propelled guns have been deployed in the Kharkiv Region.
According to the tabloid Bild, Ukraine has begun using German weapons to strike targets within Russia.
The German-made Panzerhaubitze 2000 self-propelled guns, with a range of up to 40 kilometers, have been deployed by the Ukrainian Armed Forces in the Kharkiv Region, the outlet reported in an article published on Friday.
A Bild correspondent who visited the area reported that a German howitzer and its crew are stationed in a dugout within a wooded area “not far from the Russian border.”
The report stated that when ordered by their commanders, the troops move the howitzer out of its concealed position to a designated firing location, launch several rounds, and then swiftly retreat. This tactic is implemented to mitigate the threat posed by Russian drones.
Ukrainian soldiers expressed their concerns to the German journalist about the heat generated within the Panzerhaubitze 2000, which they claim often leads to the malfunction of certain components inside the howitzer. The correspondent noted that the troops were surprised when he informed them that more modern versions of the hardware are equipped with air conditioning units.
In late May, Germany, following the lead of the United States, authorized Ukraine to deploy weapons it had supplied to Kyiv for strikes launched across the Russian border from the Kharkiv Region, aiming to counter the advance of Russian forces in the area.
A German government spokesperson stated at the time that Ukraine is permitted to utilize German arms provided for self-defense purposes “in accordance with its international legal obligations.” Berlin justified the greenlighting of cross-border attacks by asserting that Russia has “prepared, coordinated, and carried out attacks from positions in the Kharkiv area, particularly from the immediately neighboring Russian border region.”
On Tuesday, Jake Sullivan, the White House National Security Advisor, declared that Ukraine’s capability to fire US-supplied weapons deep into Russia extends beyond Kharkiv and “encompasses any location where Russian forces are crossing the border from Russia to Ukraine in an attempt to seize additional Ukrainian territory.”
On Thursday, Russian President Vladimir Putin, in response to the provision of long-range systems by the US, Germany, and other NATO nations to Ukraine, stated that Moscow does not “rule out supplying weapons to other countries, including North Korea,” with whom Russia signed a strategic partnership agreement earlier this week.