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Why Rheinmetall’s Proposed Armored Vehicle Production in Ukraine is Infeasible

© AFP 2023 / PATRIK STOLLARZSoldiers repair a "Fuchs" armored command, utility and infantry vehicle of the German Bundeswehr armed forces during the informative educational practice "Land Operation Exercise 2017" at the military training area in Munster, northern Germany, on October 13, 2017.
Soldiers repair a Fuchs armored command, utility and infantry vehicle of the German Bundeswehr armed forces during the informative educational practice Land Operation Exercise 2017 at the military training area in Munster, northern Germany, on October 13, 2017. - Sputnik International, 1920, 02.12.2023
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The implementation of the German arms manufacturer’s project on Ukrainian soil may never see the light of day, Andrey Koshkin, a retired colonel and expert at the Association of Military Political Scientists, told Sputnik.
German weapons manufacturer Rheinmetall AG wants to build its first armored vehicles in Ukraine next year, Chief Executive Armin Papperger recently said during an interview with a German business news magazine.
The CEO said that he expected a deal with Kiev on the construction of the Fuchs armored transport vehicles and the Lynx infantry fighting vehicles by the beginning of 2024.
A cyclist rides past the logo of German defence company and automotive supplier Rheinmetall at their headquarters in Duesseldorf, western Germany, on April 21, 2022. - Sputnik International, 1920, 29.09.2023
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"After the contract is signed, we want to have finished the first (Fuchs) within six-seven months, and the first Lynx within 12-13 months," he was quoted as saying.
However, retired colonel and expert at the Association of Military Political Scientists, Andrey Koshkin, argued the proposed project was not realistic.

"We understand perfectly well that the collective West would like to create sort of a death factory on the territory of Ukraine, namely, an enterprise that would create military equipment and ammunition, which will be used shortly after," Koshkin told Sputnik.

He said that Rheinmetall AG is just paying lip­-service to the company’s plans to produce the above­-mentioned armored vehicles on Ukrainian territory because implementing the project may prove an infeasible task.
Dwelling on what is behind the German arms manufacturer’s drive to produce military hardware in Ukraine, Koshkin suggested that Germany could be instructed by the US to let Kiev know that it wouldn’t be abandoned by its Western allies.
Those "wish lists" by Rheinmetall AG are nothing but "politically motivated statements" instigated by third parties, according to the Russian expert.

"These statements are made in favor of a certain political line that Washington is now pursuing," Koshkin said, referring to a "crisis in Ukraine," which he said was organized by the Democratic Party ahead of the US presidential election in 2024. He said that the Dems are "leading this crisis in order to use it as an argument in favor of victory in the 2024 election."

One cannot but take Russia’s stance on the matter into account, Koshkin said. He cited Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova as saying that if built, Rheinmetall AG’s enterprise would become a legitimate target for the Russian military.
Штаб-квартира концерна Rheinmetall в Дюссельдорфе. Архивное фото - Sputnik International, 1920, 08.11.2023
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According to Zakharova, the enterprise will be destroyed as part of military infrastructure “in the format of the tasks of the ongoing Russian special military operation to demilitarize the territory of Ukraine.”

"The construction of this plant is a challenge and a danger to Russia’s security, which is why we will destroy it. Secondly, we must take into consideration the fact that Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov emphasizes that the creation of such economic infrastructure to produce military equipment is tantamount to taking part in the Ukraine conflict. Naturally, the US and NATO are directly involved in this standoff," Koshkin stressed.

Touching upon economic feasibility for Rheinmetall AG to manufacture German armored vehicles on Ukrainian soil, he singled out "many political, economic, social, and humanitarian factors," but underscored that the company’s statements are "out of line with reality."
When asked what Ukraine could offer Rheinmetall in exchange for having its plant on its territory, the expert referred to the Zelensky regime’s desire to defend the so-called "Western democracy" at the frontline, something Kiev is paying a heavy price for.

On Friday, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said that the Ukrainian Armed Forces have lost more than 125,000 people and 16,000 units of weapons since the start of their summer counteroffensive on June 4.

Ukrainian servicemen ride on a German-made self-propelled anti-aircraft (SPAAG), better known as the Flakpanzer Gepard during a training session in Kiev Region on 26, 2023.  - Sputnik International, 1920, 12.11.2023
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At the time, Kiev deployed brigades trained by NATO instructors and armed with Western equipment, including the much-hyped Germa­n­-made Leopard tanks. Three months later, Russian President Vladimir Putin said Kiev's push had failed and that Ukraine had suffered heavy losses in men and materiel during the counteroffensive.
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