German defence minister seeks to develop advanced Taurus missiles, source says
Germany plans to buy 600 Taurus Neo missiles, says source
Says project has backing of ruling coalition
Der Spiegel magazine was first to report plan
Ukraine is pressing Germany to provide Taurus missiles
Recasts with source backing report, details
BERLIN, Oct 25 (Reuters) -German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius aims to develop an advanced version of the Tauruscruise missile and buy 600 of them, a parliamentary source told Reuters on Friday,as Ukraine presses Berlin to supply it with the long-range weapons.
So far, German forces have some 600 of the missiles with a range of more than 500 km (311 miles) in their inventories, to be launched from fighter jets such as the Tornado, the F-15 or the F-18.
The weapon built by European defence company MBDA AIR.PABAES.LLDOF.MI is designed to destroy high-value targets behind enemy lines such as command bunkers, ammunition and fuel dumps, airfields and bridges.
Russia has been using long-range missiles to destroy targets in Ukraine, including civilian infrastructure, but Ukraine has no easy way to respond.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has repeatedly denied requests by Ukraine to supply it with the Taurus cruise missilesamid concerns over their long range and their potential use against targets inside Russia.
Pistorius now wants to buy an advanced version, the Taurus Neo, at a total price of around 2.1 billion euros ($2.3 billion) for 600 missiles, with the first deliveries to take place in 2029, said Der Spiegel magazine, which was the first to report thestory.
The minister has not yet secured the funds, with 350 million euros needed in 2025 to kickstart the project and the lion's share of the money to flow from 2029, the magazine reported. For that reason the project is posited only as an option in 2025 budget documents.
GOVERNMENT BACKING?
However, the parliamentary source, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the project had the backing of the ruling coalition, making its implementation likely despite a budget squeeze.
"It's Germany's most important weapon," the source told Reuters, referring to the fact that the Taurus is the country's only standoff weapon.
The 350 million euros needed in 2025 are meant to pay for the development of Taurus Neo by MBDA, the source said, with a special eye on the range, accuracy and explosive power of the new missile.
The defence ministry in Berlin was not immediately available for comment.
Britain and France have supplied Ukraine with Storm Shadow and Scalp cruise missiles, and Ukraine's military has said it had adapted Soviet-made aircraft to use them.
The Kremlin has told Germany that delivering cruise missiles to Kyiv would lead to a further round of "spiralling tension" in the Ukraine conflict.
($1 = 0.9237 euros)
Reporting by Sabine Siebold, editing by Miranda Murray, Hugh Lawson and Gareth Jones
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