The European Union overtook the United States as the biggest supporter of Ukraine in 2023, according to the German Kiel Institute for the World Economy. And Germany is seen as by far the largest European donor. In the first two years of the war, Germany’s weapons deliveries to Ukraine included two Patriot launchers, 14 self-propelled howitzers, 18 Leopard 2 main battle tanks, 52 self-propelled antiaircraft guns, 90 infantry vehicles and a variety of drones—and much more is promised.

But this is not the whole picture, as much as Germany would like other nations to believe it.

From the beginning of the war, Germany has consistently delayed international weapons deliveries and sanctions against Russia. The weapons it did deliver often came weeks and months later than they were requested, and only after Western partners pressured Germany to send them. Additionally, Germany has refused to participate in an international coalition to provide Ukraine with fighter jets and, even after months of pressure, denied deliveries of its Taurus cruise missile. It has also shut down France’s proposal to send troops.

Germany has essentially ensured that Ukraine would have enough to survive, but never enough to seriously hurt Russia or to win. This points to the existence of a secret German-Russian deal—a modern-day Molotov-Ribbentrop pact—one that Trumpet editor in chief Gerald Flurry has been talking about for years.

The question is, in light of such a deal, why is Germany sending any aid at all?

Firstly, Germany is Europe’s biggest economy, and many in Eastern Europe, terrified of Russia, have expected and even demanded German support for Ukraine. By sending weapons that may slow Russia’s invasion of Ukraine without preventing its ultimate victory, Germany is walking a fine line. But it does not do so without personal benefit.

One of the biggest profiters of this war is Germany’s largest arms manufacturer: Rheinmetall. Its share price almost doubled last year. This year, its sales are expected to exceed €10 billion (us$10.8 billion) for the first time ever. On March 14, Rheinmetall announced a plan to drastically ramp up production of artillery shells and other munitions by opening new factories in Germany, Lithuania and Ukraine. Rheinmetall is not only arming Ukraine, but also filling the stockpiles of Europe’s militaries. As Europe’s old equipment is shipped to Ukraine, new equipment takes its place.

Germany’s military support for Ukraine doesn’t compare to the €100 billion special fund that enables Germany’s own military advancement. Even when Germany buys from abroad, Rheinmetall finds a way to benefit. Last August, it started construction of a state-of-the-art F-35 factory in Weeze, Germany, to help produce the F-35 Lightning ii in cooperation with the United States-based Northrop Grumman and Lockheed Martin.

Rheinmetall is also developing a next-generation battle tank that addresses some of the lessons from Ukraine. The current Leopard tank deployed in Ukraine revealed that its heavy design means excessive wear and tear in long, drawn-out battles. The war also proved that the bottom and especially the top of tanks need to be far better protected. Modern tanks also need to be equipped with their own set of drones and augmented with new technologies empowered by artificial intelligence to face rapidly changing battlefields.

The Franco-German joint venture knds is also working on a new battle tank for the German and French armed forces that applies these lessons. When agreement on the supertank was announced in March, it was also announced that knds would create a unit in Ukraine to locally produce ammunition as well as spare parts for French and German systems in use in Ukraine that include Leopard 2 tanks, the wheeled Caesar 155-mm howitzer, the tracked PzH 2000 howitzer and the Gepard self-propelled antiaircraft gun. These experiences are certain to help the weapons manufacturers improve.

A lesser-known example of a company profiting from the war is Germany’s sensor manufacturer Hensoldt, which supplied Ukraine with its iris-t air defense system. During the course of the war, Hensoldt noted a threefold increase in certain departments, such as remote sensing and electronic warfare.

But the biggest German contribution in the future to the warfare in Ukraine may be through the use of AI. Time wrote on February 8 that Ukraine has become an “AI war lab.” Later that month, the German tech firm Helsing GmbH signed a deal with Ukraine to incorporate AI into Ukraine-made drones and other unmanned aerial vehicles.

Germany has also sent generals to Ukraine for a visit, is in regular communication with its military leaders, trains some of its soldiers, and studies the war closely. Germany is getting a good idea of what weapons, munition and military facilities are needed to sustain a large-scale war and how effective its current weaponry is. At the same time, it is rapidly expanding arms production. Russia is also learning vital lessons from the Ukraine war and expanding its military alliances and arms production.

While we may not know all the reasons for Germany’s arms deliveries to Ukraine, we can be certain that the real beneficiary will not be Ukraine: It will be the German and Russian military empires. So says Bible prophecy!

The secret deal that Germany and Russia have made is aimed at enabling each other to build an empire. After the war against Ukraine began, Mr. Flurry wrote: “These two nations are working to empower themselves and each other at the expense of Europe and the U.S.-led world order. Both want to tear down that order and build themselves into great empires! Those empires will inevitably clash, but for now it is in both Germany’s and Russia’s interest to weaken everyone else and strengthen themselves and each other. With this in mind, Germany’s duplicitous behavior is easy to understand” (Trumpet, July 2022).

Our world is suffering because of this German-Russian pact! But as Jesus Christ said, “[T]hey that take the sword shall perish with the sword” (Matthew 26:52). God will crush every nation that puts its trust in military might—and will soon bring the whole world to repentance.