The conflicts in Ukraine and Iraq are calling for Germany to take responsibility and it is ready to do so, von der Leyen said in an interview with German public broadcaster ARD on Saturday.
German media have previously reported equipment problems within the Bundeswehr, Germany's armed forces, because of which the country had temporary difficulties, fulfilling its military duties.
According to the defense minister, the problems are related to the late delivery of spare parts for aircraft and the technical failure of some helicopters belonging to the naval forces. These problems are not solely due to her own faults, she stated, but also to the mistakes of the defense industry.
On September 5, a meeting of the trilateral Contact Group on Ukraine was held in Minsk and resulted in a ceasefire deal between Kiev and independence supporters in eastern Ukraine, which took effect on the day. The sides also agreed to international monitoring. On September 19, the Contact Group drew up a memorandum, which included OSCE monitoring the sides' fulfillment of their agreements.
Chief Monitor of the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine Ertugrul Apakan has stated that the monitoring would be carried out by ground patrols and drones, with the latter being provided by Germany and France. Media reports on Saturday suggested that Berlin was considering sending 200 troops to Ukraine as well.
Germany is also a partner of the US-led coalition against the Islamic State (IS), an extremist group that has seized vast territories in Iraq and Syria, and declared an Islamic caliphate on the territories under its control. Though it is not participating in the coalition's airstrikes against IS, Germany has agreed to provide Kurdish fighters with equipment and military training.
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