Spain will send anti-tank grenade launchers, machine guns and ammunition to Ukraine tomorrow

Spain’s Minister of Defence, Margarita Robles, announced last night that two Air Force planes will deliver “offensive weapons” to Ukraine tomorrow, Friday 4 March. This is believed to consist of 1,370 anti-tank grenade launchers and 700,000 rifle and machine gun cartridges. The planes will land in Poland, near the border, and the weapons will then be picked up by the Ukrainian authorities.

Robles said this initial supply is important because the items can be used by “people with little experience in using weapons”. She also stressed that Ukraine is a country “which has been attacked” and that its citizens are "acting legitimately in defence" of their homeland and the weapons are being provided for that purpose.

Kiev has been asking for offensive material for several days, although it says the most useful weapons are mortar and rocket-propelled grenades and anti-tank and anti-aircraft missiles. Most of its allies who promised military assistance have included rocket launchers, anti-tank missiles, anti-aircraft systems, rifles and ammunition in their initial supplies.

In their inventory, the Spanish armed forces have weapons similar to those of Ukraine, such as C-90 and Alcotán C-100 rocket launchers, made by the Spanish firm Instalanza; Mistral anti-aircraft missiles, from the MBDA company; Spike anti-aircraft missiles from the Israeli firm Rafael and the old American-designed Tows.