Germany only has six Patriots left defense minister
Germany has only six US-made Patriot air defense systems available, Defense Minister Boris Pistorius has told the Financial Times. The official added that Berlin could no longer deplete its own stocks to arm Kiev.
While Ukraine has received a number of Patriot units since its conflict with Russia escalated in February of 2022, Vladimir Zelensky has been increasingly urging his Western backers to provide more recently.
In an interview with the FT published on Sunday, Pistorius said that "we only have six left in Germany," revealing that two of the country's Patriot units had been lent to Poland, while another was unavailable due to maintenance or training.
"That's really too few, especially considering the NATO capability goals we have to meet. We definitely can't give any more," the German defense minister stressed.
Speaking to reporters on Sunday evening, US President Donald Trump indicated his readiness to supply several Patriots to Ukraine. However, he stopped short of saying whether he was talking about entire air-defense systems or just the missiles for them.
"But the European Union is paying for them. We are not paying anything for them... This will be a business for us," Trump emphasized.
The comment came shortly after the Pentagon reversed its decision to cut some of its military aid for Kiev.
The US president has recently toughened his rhetoric toward his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, accusing him of being unwilling to end the hostilities.
Commenting on the Patriot system, valued at around $1 billion per battery, Trump said earlier this month that "it's a shame that we have to spend so much money" on supporting Ukraine.
The Russian military claims to have destroyed some of the Western-supplied Patriot air defense systems during the course of the conflict.
Moscow has consistently stressed that no amount of Western military aid to Ukraine can change the course of the conflict but only serves to prolong the bloodshed and escalate the hostilities.
(RT.com)
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Malaysian Reserve
an hour ago
- Malaysian Reserve
AMD says it will restart MI308 sales to China after US review
ADVANCED Micro Devices Inc. said that it plans to restart shipments of its MI308 chips to China after the US said it would approve the sales, following a similar decision on an Nvidia Corp. semiconductor. The US Commerce Department told AMD that license applications for the MI308 products would move forward for review, an AMD spokesman said Tuesday. Allowing the products back into China is a reversal for President Donald Trump's administration, which spent weeks insisting that curbs on chips sales to the Asian country were not up for discussion. The news comes after weeks of thawing ties between the two nations as well as Nvidia Chief Executive Officer Jensen Huang's meeting with Trump last week. AMD said in April that export restrictions on the MI308 chips would cost the company about $800 million. Earlier, Nvidia similarly said the government had agreed to green-light shipments of its H20 AI chip to China, a decision that could add billions to the company's revenue this year. AMD shares rose 5% in premarket trading on Tuesday. The stock closed at $146.24 on Monday and has gained 21% this year. –BLOOMBERG
The Star
an hour ago
- The Star
Miti's AI chip export rule to have no impact on data centres
KUALA LUMPUR: MIDF Amanah Investment Bank Bhd believes that data centres will not be affected by the Ministry of Investment, Trade and Industry's (MITI) latest directive on artificial intelligence (AI) chips. The ministry has issued a directive which requires all exports, transshipments and transits of high-performance AI chips of United States (US) origin in Malaysia to obtain a Strategic Trade Permit (STP). In a research note today, the investment bank said the import of US-made advanced AI chips for use in domestic servers does not fall under the scope of the new rules unless the data centre operators intend to move the chips out of Malaysia. "There is zero impact from this directive in our opinion, as far as data centres in Malaysia are concerned. This is not an additional red tape that could delay the process of setting up a data centre in Malaysia,' it said. MIDF noted that since the beginning of the year, it has consistently reiterated that most new data centres are AI-ready, though some may eventually be used for non-AI purposes. The investment bank said the directive primarily addresses the movement of AI chips out of Malaysia, which it views as a prudent move by MITI to prevent suspected smuggling of chips into China through intermediaries. "This shows Malaysia's willingness to take responsibility for the movement of US-origin AI chips out of the country by stepping up its enforcement,' it added. MIDF said negotiations between Malaysia and the US will likely focus on regulatory enforcement, end-user monitoring, and the seriousness in addressing violations of the control measures. "MITI's latest directive covers all these. It is hoped that this will be able to placate the US when negotiating the restrictions of AI chip exports under Trump's refashioned AI Diffusion Rule,' it said. It added that speculation is growing around a possible shift from the current three-tiered country system to a licensing regime based on government-to-government agreements. This could mean that firms headquartered in the US or its close allies may no longer be restricted by the current seven per cent AI computing power limit for countries outside Tier 1, which allows for more AI capacities to be planned in countries such as Malaysia. "Regardless of the changes from Biden's rescinded Framework of AI Diffusion to the new rule being rewritten by the Trump administration, MIDF believes the essence remains, which is to contain China's AI advancement and ensure that US AI chips are not used to train Chinese AI models,' noted MIDF. - Bernama
The Star
an hour ago
- The Star
Chinese firms rush to buy Nvidia AI chips as sales set to resume
BEIJING/HONG KONG: Chinese firms are scrambling to buy Nvidia's H20 artificial intelligence chips, two sources told Reuters, as the company said it planned to resume sales to the mainland days after its CEO met U.S. President Donald Trump. Nvidia's AI chips have been a key focus of U.S. export controls designed to keep the most advanced chips out of Chinese hands over national security concerns. The U.S.-listed company has said the curbs would cut its revenue by $15 billion. The world's most valuable firm is filing applications with the U.S. government to resume sales to China of the H20 graphics processing unit (GPU), and expects to get the licences soon, Nvidia said in a statement. "The U.S. government has assured Nvidia that licences will be granted, and Nvidia hopes to start deliveries soon," said the company, whose chief executive, Jensen Huang, is visiting Beijing and set to speak at an event on Wednesday. Rival AI chipmaker AMD also said it was informed by the U.S. Department of Commerce that licence applications to export its MI308 chips to China will be moving forward for review. AMD, which has forecast a $1.5 billion revenue hit this year due to the U.S. export curbs, plans to resume shipments of these chips when licences are approved, it said in an emailed statement. Shares of both Nvidia and AMD jumped about 5% in premarket trading. "This is a major catalyst for Nvidia shares, as many had written off the chance of any meaningful revenue coming from China," said Matt Britzman, senior equity analyst, Hargreaves Lansdown. The White House, which has previously expressed concern that the Chinese military could use AI chips to develop weapons, did not respond to a request for comment. Chinese companies have scrambled to place orders for the chips, which Nvidia would then need to send to the U.S. government for approval, the sources familiar with the matter said. They added that internet giants ByteDance and Tencent are in the process of submitting applications. Central to the process is a approved list put together by Nvidia for Chinese companies to register for potential purchases, one of the sources said. ByteDance and Tencent did not respond to a request for comment. Nvidia declined to comment on the approved list system. Nvidia, which has criticised the export curbs the Trump administration imposed in April that stopped it from selling its H20 chip in China, also said it has introduced a new model tailored to meet regulatory rules in the Chinese market. Huang is set for a media briefing in Beijing on Wednesday when he attends a supply chain expo. The Nvidia CEO also visited China in April and stressed the importance of the Chinese market. "The Chinese market is massive, dynamic, and highly innovative, and it's also home to many AI researchers," Huang told Chinese state broadcaster CCTV on Tuesday. "Therefore, it is indeed crucial for American companies to establish roots in the Chinese market." Asked at a regular foreign ministry briefing in Beijing about Nvidia's plans to resume AI chip sales, a spokesperson said, "China is opposed to the politicisation, instrumentalisation and weaponisation of science, technology and economic and trade issues to maliciously blockade and suppress China." SUPPLY CHAIN Nvidia has faced increased competition from Chinese tech giant Huawei and other makers of GPUs - the chips used to train artificial intelligence. But Chinese companies, including big tech firms, still crave Nvidia chips for its computing platform known as CUDA. Huang's visit is being closely watched in both China and the United States, where a bipartisan pair of senators last week sent the CEO a letter asking him to abstain from meeting companies working with military or intelligence bodies. The senators also asked Huang to refrain from meeting with entities named on the United States' restricted export list. The move to resume sales of the H20 chips comes amid easing tensions between Washington and Beijing, with China relaxing controls on rare earth exports and the United States allowing chip design software services to restart in China. "The uncertainties between the U.S. and China remain high and despite a pause in H20's ban, Chinese companies will continue to diversify their options to better protect their supply chain integrity," said He Hui, research director of semiconductors at Omdia. The H20 chip was developed specifically for the Chinese market after U.S. export curbs imposed on national security grounds in late 2023. The AI chip was Nvidia's most powerful legally available product in China until it was effectively banned by Washington in April. The H20 ban forced Nvidia to write off $5.5 billion in inventories, and Huang told the Stratechery podcast that the company also had to walk away from $15 billion in sales. But now, the possibility of new licences could represent about $15 billion to $20 billion in additional revenue this year, depending on when the approval is granted and how quick the deliveries can ramp back up, said Hargreaves' Britzman. "There's also a chance Nvidia can reverse some, or all, of the $5.5 billion impairment charge taken in the first quarter, providing a double boost for earnings." Nvidia also announced the development of a new AI chip designed specifically for China, called the RTX Pro GPU. The company described it as "fully compliant" with U.S. export controls and suitable for digital twin AI applications in sectors, such as smart factories and logistics. In May, Reuters reported Nvidia was preparing to launch in China a new AI chip, based on the RTX Pro 6000D, at a significantly lower price point than the H20. The graphics processing unit would be part of Nvidia's latest generation Blackwell-architecture AI processors and was expected to be priced well below the H20 for its weaker specifications and simpler manufacturing requirements, sources said. China generated $17 billion in revenue for Nvidia in the fiscal year ending January 26, or 13% of total sales, based on its latest annual report. Huang has consistently highlighted China as a critical market for Nvidia's growth. - Reuters
