Germany will deliver an additional batch of 12 Panzerhaubitze 2000 self-propelled howitzers to Ukraine, Defense Minister Boris Pistorius has announced.
Six howitzers will be delivered by the end of this year and the rest next year, Pistorius said on the sidelines of a Ukraine Contact Group meeting in Ramstein last week.
The deliveries will cost 150 million euros ($165 million).
Additionally, 77 older Leopard 1A5 main battle tanks were proposed to be handed over to Ukraine by Germany and partner nations in the future.
Panzerhaubitze 2000
Ukraine already operates around 30 German-donated Panzerhaubitze artillery guns. An additional 18 Panzerhaubitzes were pledged by Berlin earlier this year.
Jointly developed by Krauss-Maffei Wegmann and Rheinmetall in the 1980s and 1990s for the German Army, the tracked platform is capable of a speed of 60 kilometers (37 miles) per hour on highways.
The 155mm gun has a 52-caliber barrel and features a range of over 30 kilometers (18.6 miles) with standard rounds and up to 56 kilometers (35 miles) with rocket-assisted ballistic rounds.
It is capable of firing 3 shots in 10 seconds, delivering Multiple Round Simultaneous Impact strikes. The gun has a magazine depth of 32 rounds.
