Preparing for a potential military conflict with Russia, Germany will not stockpile drones, even though the war in Ukraine has underscored the importance of this type of weapon, Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said.
Building a reserve of drones doesn’t make sense because of the rapid pace of progress in the field, he said in an interview with Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung.
“In drone development, we’re seeing ever-shorter innovation cycles. Technologies are changing fundamentally within two to three months, including in counter-drone defense.”
“That’s why it’s pointless to stockpile drones worth billions today that will be outdated the day after tomorrow,” the minister said.
Instead, Germany is prioritizing the development of new weapons and preparing its defense industry for a potential war, he said. “Together with companies, we will ensure that in the event of war these ultra-modern options (weapons) can be produced quickly and in large quantities,” Pistorius explained.
He expressed confidence that armored vehicles will continue to play a decisive role alongside drones.
“Russia is producing more ‘Shaheds’ and similar drones than it uses.”
“The war in Ukraine shows the enormous importance of drones in modern combat. But heavy equipment will also continue to play a decisive role. Military experts say the war of the future will be combined arms: using howitzers, tanks and aircraft, as well as cyberspace and, of course, unmanned systems,” the minister said.
In early November, Gundbert Scherf, co-founder of German drone start-up Helsing, criticized the lack of drones in Western weapons supplied to Ukraine.
“Between 80% and 90% of losses on both sides are caused by drones,” the executive said. He called for a rethink of priorities, noting that budgets for armored vehicles remain many times larger than for UAVs. “That reflects neither Ukraine’s experience nor the trajectory for the coming years,” Scherf argued.
His remarks stand in sharp contrast to comments from the head of Rheinmetall, which makes munitions and armored vehicles. In an October interview with Handelsblatt, Armin Papperger (Armin Papperger) said he does not believe drones will fully replace tanks and infantry fighting vehicles on the battlefield.
The fighting in Ukraine shows that “wars are still waged with armored vehicles and missiles” and “that won’t change in the future.”
“Right now, there’s a lot of talk that future wars will be fought only with drones. I think that’s nonsense,” Papperger said.
