Denmark has dropped its previously voiced plans to supply Ukraine with arms. The equipment under consideration was ruled “too old” and will not be offered as aid, TV2 reported.
The main challenge that arose is that the man-portable Stinger missiles in question, which were previously described as a “flexible weapons capable of shooting down planes”, are no longer used by the Danish defence itself and are currently stored in a secret warehouse, slated for disposal.
“There's a reason it's stored, so we can not send it away,” Defence Minister Morten Bødskov was quoted as saying.
Danish Chief of Defence Flemming Lentfer described the Stinger missiles as “both technically and operationally obsolete”, adding and that he had a hard time imagining how they could be used.
“They were taken out of operational use in the Danish defence back in 2009. A few years ago, we considered whether we could take it out of storage, update it and reuse it, and the conclusion at the time was that it certainly was not,” Flemming Lentfer told TV2. “It's for disposal. Our clear assessment is that it is not applicable to the modern, operational battlefield,” he added.
Lentfer said that there have been considerations about sending binoculars and night vision equipment “of older date”.
“But it is my clear assessment that this would be a symbolic act rather than something that can de facto be used on a battlefield,” Lentfer emphasised.
Earlier this week, Denmark decided to tighten its preparedness in response to what the Defence Ministry dubbed “unacceptable Russian military pressure on Ukraine”.
Over the past few months, the West and Ukraine have accused Russia of massing troops near the Ukrainian border in alleged preparation for “invasion”. Russia has insistently dispelled allegations of invasion plans, stressing that it has the right to move its forces within its own territory as it pleases.
Russia has also expressed concerns over NATO military activity near its borders and ongoing military support of Ukraine. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov stressed that Moscow is not excluding that the “hysteria”around Ukraine fuelled by the West is aimed at concealing Kiev's plans to sabotage the Minsk Agreements on Donbas.