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Germany preparing long-range weapons for Ukraine, says Merz

By IANS | Updated: November 20, 2025 09:00 IST

Berlin, Nov 20 German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said that Germany is actively working to provide the Ukrainian army ...

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Berlin, Nov 20 German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said that Germany is actively working to provide the Ukrainian army with long-range weapon systems.

Speaking at a joint press conference with Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson in Berlin on Wednesday (local time), Merz said Germany and Ukraine are currently advancing projects related to "long-range fire."

"We are doing everything we can to equip the Ukrainian army with weapon systems that have the necessary range," he said, declining to offer further details for tactical reasons.

The announcement came as Merz and Kristersson reiterated their commitment to strengthening bilateral cooperation on security and defence.

In a separate development, the Trump administration has drafted a new 28-point plan and held quiet and deep consultations with Russia in a renewed push to restart peace talks aimed at ending the Ukraine crisis, according to local media reports.

The plan is inspired by US President Donald Trump's push for the deal in Gaza, Xinhua news agency reports, quoting US online media outlet Axios.

According to the report, US Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff is leading the effort to craft the plan, which is organised into four broad sections: peace in Ukraine, security guarantees, security in Europe, and future US relations with Russia and Ukraine.

"The president has been clear that it is time to stop the killing and make a deal to end the war. President Trump believes that there is a chance to end this senseless war if flexibility is shown," a White House official told Axios.

How the plan addresses some of the most contentious issues, particularly territorial control in eastern Ukraine, remains unclear, as does the reaction from Kiev and its European allies, said the report.

In late October, Witkoff and other members of Trump's team discussed the plan extensively with Russian President Vladimir Putin's special envoy Kirill Dmitriev in Miami, Florida, said the report.

In an interview with Axios on Monday, Dmitriev expressed optimism about the deal's chances of success, saying that, unlike past efforts, "we feel the Russian position is really being heard."

Witkoff discussed the plan with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky's national security adviser Rustem Umerov in a meeting earlier this week in Miami, a Ukrainian official confirmed to Axios.

Peace talks on Ukraine have stalled since Trump and Putin met in August in Alaska. Moscow rejected Trump's proposal for an immediate freeze in fighting last month, prompting Trump to cancel a planned summit in Hungary and impose sanctions on Russia's two largest oil companies.

Disclaimer: This post has been auto-published from an agency feed without any modifications to the text and has not been reviewed by an editor

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