Problems with a German railroad contract slowed US munitions to Ukraine, IG says

U.S. shipments of ammunition to Ukraine were delayed for at least two months last year because of problems with a U.S. military contract with Germany’s Deutsche Bahn railways, according to a Defense Department Inspector General report. 

The “multiple delays” happened between December 2022 and January 2023, according to the report, around the same time Ukraine began to run out of U.S.-supplied ammunition—making it one of several instances in which U.S. aid shortfalls have affected the Ukrainian military since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. 

The report was released to Defense One on Thursday in response to a Freedom of Information Act request.

In at least one instance, “no rail service was available to transport the ammunition.” The problem was eventually solved by chartering boats to deliver it instead, at a cost of $1.6 million to the United States. 

The IG report said the delays were caused by the U.S. European Command agreement with Deutsche Bahn failing to account for some criteria or factor, but the specifics of the deficiency are redacted. 

Another section of the report says the agreement “does not contain any requirement for Deutsche Bahn,” to take some action, but the nature of the action is redacted. The wording suggests that Deutsche Bahn denied the military’s request for some kind of service. Germany’s federal government owns Deutsche Bahn, which is Germany’ largest rail provider.  

Without a revised agreement, future delays that would be “disruptive to the flow of critical ammunition to Ukraine,” could still occur, the report said. When the report was published in July 2023, the military had not yet fixed its agreement with Deutsche Bahn.

The report also recommended that European Command investigate other means of shipping ammunition to Ukraine. 

European Command’s deputy director for logistics agreed with the recommendation to review the military’s agreement with Deutsche Bahn and enact any necessary changes. And the command agreed with the report’s call to find other shipping options, saying it would look at other seaports and logistics. 

Germany’s rail network’s ability to move military goods is hampered by extensive bureaucracy, too little investment in infrastructure, and not enough flat-bed wagons for military goods, according to a June report by the German Council on Foreign Relations. 

Military shipments also must compete with commercial goods, the report noted. While the Germany military signed a 2023 agreement to reserve 343 flat wagons, Deutsche Bahn Cargo would struggle to do more because of commercial transport reservations, it said.