Kremlin warns German weapons factory is legit target for Russia’s military

BERLIN — Arms factories inside Ukraine run by German defense contractor Rheinmetall are fair game for Russian President Vladimir Putin’s forces, the Kremlin said Tuesday.

Asked whether a vehicle maintenance plant recently opened by the company inside war-ravaged Ukraine is a legitimate target, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov answered: “Certainly it is,” according to state-owned news agency TASS.

Earlier this year, Rheinmetall’s CEO Armin Papperger — the most powerful weapons tycoon in Europe — was the subject of an assassination attempt by Russian operatives that was foiled by the United States and Germany.

The Düsseldorf-based firm plans to run four factories inside Ukraine producing everything from artillery ammunition to gunpowder and air defense systems, alongside the vehicle repair and maintenance facility.

Rheinmetall — which Papperger claims is the most profitable defense company in the world — said earlier this month that it had already sent around 200 Marder infantry fighting vehicles to Ukraine, and the German government has donated Rheinmetall’s air defense systems too, along with thousands of shells.

Papperger justified investments in production plants inside Ukraine by saying in a recent interview with Welt that Kyiv needs four million rounds of artillery ammunition to restock its silos as it resists Putin’s full-scale invasion.