Berlin, 21 March 2025 (dpa/MIA) - Germany's Bundestag budget committee on Friday approved €3 billion ($3.2 billion) in additional military aid for Ukraine in 2025 and a further €8.3 billion for 2026 to 2029.

The funds, which can now be released, are intended to bolster Ukraine’s increasingly difficult defence against Russian forces.

An important part of this move was the approval of an amendment by Germany's upper house of parliament earlier on Friday, easing the country's strict debt limits for increased defence spending.

With Washington scaling back support for Kiev, uncertainty over sustained Western aid is growing.

European allies are trying to fill the gap, warning that Russia’s military build-up now extends beyond the war in Ukraine and increasingly threatens NATO territory.

The package, negotiated with both industry and Ukrainian officials, is designed to swiftly deliver essential military equipment, budget lawmaker Andreas Schwarz from the Social Democrats said in Berlin.

A spokesman for Defence Minister Boris Pistorius said that the equipment delivered to Ukraine would consist of Iris-T air defence systems, guided missiles, surveillance radars, drones, combat vehicles and light weapons.

Government spokesperson Steffen Hebestreit said Germany has provided more than €44 billion in aid to Ukraine since the beginning of the full-scale Russian invasion.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky thanked Germany, calling the fresh aid "exactly what Ukraine needs most" to save lives.

He also expressed gratitude to both outgoing Chancellor Olaf Scholz and his likely successor, Friedrich Merz.

MIA file photo