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Russia-Ukraine crisis: Germany to approve export of RPGs to Kyiv by third country

Berlin has a long-standing policy of not exporting weapons to war zones

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Germany is in the process of approving the delivery of 400 RPGs to Ukraine by a third country, an EU diplomat told Reuters, a major shift in policy after Berlin faced criticism for refusing to send weapons to Kyiv, unlike other Western allies.

Germany has a long-standing policy of not exporting weapons to war zones, rooted partly in its bloody 20th-century history and resulting pacifism. Countries aiming to onpass German weapons exports need to apply for approval in Berlin first.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has repeatedly referred to this policy in recent weeks when refusing to deliver lethal weapons to Ukraine.

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Berlin also still has to decide about a request by Estonia that wants to pass on old GDR howitzers to Ukraine. Finland had bought the howitzers in the 90s after the fall of the Berlin wall, and later re-sold them to Estonia.

In the case of the rocket-propelled grenades, Germany had delivered them to a third country in the past, the EU diplomat told Reuters.

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