The German armed forces only have about 20,000 high-explosive artillery shells, Der Spiegel magazine claims, citing classified Defence Ministry documents.

The documents were intended to convince the budget committee that it was necessary to proceed with the urgent purchase of such material.

Countries such as Germany rushed to supply Ukraine with 155mm missiles after Russia invaded in February 2022. As a result, stocks for their own defence have dwindled.

The German military will need to stockpile around 230,000 missiles by 2031 to meet NATO’s target of having enough missiles to last 30 days of heavy fighting.

The defence ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the German magazine’s report.

As Spiegel also notes, the ministry intends to present to the budget committee nine contracts for the purchase of artillery and tank shells within the next few months.