Germany to finance production of 500 AN-196 “Liuty” deep strike drones

The German government has signed the first contract to finance the production in Ukraine of more than 500 AN-196 long-range strike drones, also known as “Liuty”. This was reported by the newspaper Welt, citing government sources.

According to Welt, these drones have a flight range of up to 1,200 kilometres and carry a warhead weighing about 50 kilograms. They are already used by the Armed Forces of Ukraine, in particular during strikes on targets in Russia.

German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul, during a visit to Kyiv on 1 July, announced his intention to deepen defence-industrial cooperation between the countries. In particular, this concerns the creation of joint ventures and the expansion of local weapons production. The funding is aimed at the production of weapons that the Ukrainian military is already familiar with. Clarifications on the types of financed weapons are not provided so as not to reveal the potential capabilities of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

It is also worth noting that the Swedish government provided similar funding as part of military assistance. In November 2024, it supported the production of Ukrainian long-range drones directly on the territory of Ukraine.

AN-196 (“Liuty”) drones are actively used to destroy oil refineries and military facilities on the territory of Russia. They have become one of the main types of long-range strike drones used by the Ukrainian army.