German government says support for Ukraine not decreasing
Representatives of several government agencies said this at a briefing in Berlin on December 29, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.
In particular, Susanne Ungrad, spokesperson for Germany's Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy, stressed that support for Ukraine is continuing in full. At the same time, she explained the lower figures for German arms exports since the beginning of 2025.
"Export licenses issued during a specific period always reflect only part of the overall military support for Ukraine. [...] We continue to provide support in full – as much as is necessary – both in the military sphere and at other levels," the spokesperson said.
When asked to comment on the decline in the total amount of aid and the value of export licenses granted to Ukraine in the first half of the current year, Ungrad said that, on the one hand, this is due to the fact that support is being provided on the basis of licenses issued earlier, which are still valid and therefore are not reflected again in the report. On the other hand, funds for Ukraine are being directed to long-term projects, which are not immediately, but only over time, reflected in the form of new export licenses.
She added that not all measures of military support for Ukraine require arms export licenses, as they often involve other goods that were needed and supplied. As a result, these do not appear in arms export reports.
Another factor mentioned by Ungrad is that Ukraine is increasingly investing in its own arms production.
For his part, Defense Ministry spokesperson Kenneth Harms also noted that assistance is continuing in full. He said that in the area of military support there are "no indications whatsoever of improper or misdirected use of funds."
Deputy Spokesperson of the German Federal Government Sebastian Hille, in turn, spoke about financial support for Ukraine over the next two years, which is secured thanks to a EUR 90 billion loan agreed by heads of state and government at a meeting of the European Council.
"In our view, this is an extremely important signal – good news for Ukraine and bad news for Putin. We see this as a decisive signal for ending the war, because Putin will only make concessions once he realizes that this war no longer makes sense for him," Hille said.
According to the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy, licenses for arms exports from Germany have declined significantly this year. Between January 1 and December 8, 2025, the German government approved exports of weapons and other military equipment worth EUR 8.4 billion. In contrast, the previous two years saw record levels, with approved deliveries reaching EUR 13.33 billion in 2024 and EUR 12.15 billion in 2023. Fewer arms exports were approved in particular for Ukraine: in 2025, military equipment worth EUR 1.14 billion was approved, compared to EUR 8.15 billion in 2024.
As reported, Germany is currently the largest bilateral "donor" to Ukraine in terms of military, humanitarian, and financial assistance.
Photo: Diehl Defence
