Ukraine's armed forces are facing serious difficulties due to a shortage of spare parts for Western weapons, particularly self-propelled howitzers supplied by Germany, the Netherlands and Italy. According to Bild, this problem significantly limits the use of equipment that has already failed.
Two commanders of Ukrainian artillery units, who have been using Western self-propelled howitzers for almost two years, confirmed the critical situation with spare parts. “It’s a great system, but wear and tear is very high,” one of the artillerymen notes. Repair problems became especially noticeable during the Battle of Bakhmut in the summer of 2022.
Despite the fact that the manufacturer Rheinmetall announced a significant order for the production of new units in May of this year, the manufacturing process has been taking several months due to the difficulty of hardening the special tubes. Germany is currently supplying a limited number of tubes for the urgent needs of the front, but Ukrainian artillerymen note that this is only part of the problem. Other components of the self-propelled howitzers also need to be replaced, but their procurement is complicated by bureaucratic obstacles.
Defense Committee Chairman Markus Faber criticizes the situation, noting that the shortage of spare parts has become a bigger problem for weapons systems than enemy fire. He emphasizes that if sufficient spare parts were delivered in a timely manner, Ukraine could have more functional howitzers for defense.
Germany plans to transfer 12 more Panzerhaubitze 2000 howitzers to Ukraine. Berlin will also provide the Ukrainian army with 77 more Leopard 1A5 tanks with other partners. German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said that six of these howitzers will be delivered to Ukraine this year, and another six in 2025.
