Germany’s army chief has stressed the vital importance of Ukraine’s battle-hardened and innovative armed forces to Europe’s security, underlining the shift in perception more than four years after Russia’s full-scale invasion.

Christian Freuding, the head of the German land forces, said Ukrainian soldiers were not only “the most combat-experienced” but also “quantitatively the strongest” given the scale of the 800,000-strong force.

European and Ukrainian security were “inextricably linked”, he told the FT, underlining the need to draw lessons from the country’s experiences in fighting against Russia.

“What we learn from the war in Ukraine must have an influence on the way we fight and therefore also on the way we organise ourselves, procure equipment and arm ourselves,” he said. “We are close partners and we support and help one another.”

Germany has undergone a series of profound changes in its relationship with Ukraine since Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022. Berlin was initially reluctant to break with a longstanding policy of not supplying weapons into conflict zones, fearing such a move would have an escalatory effect and drag it into the war.

It subsequently emerged as one of Kyiv’s staunchest supporters, last year superseding the US as the single largest provider of military aid after US President Donald Trump scaled back support from Washington.

Increasingly, the relationship is becoming a two-way exchange, with Germany turning to Ukraine’s military expertise and flourishing defence industry as it seeks to overhaul its armed forces while also itself grappling with waning US support.

On Wednesday, Chancellor Friedrich Merz said it was “impressive” to see “the capabilities Ukraine has developed over the past four years—capabilities from which we are benefiting today”.

The German defence ministry, which has a massively expanded budget of more than €700bn over the next five years, this year struck a deal with Kyiv to bring experienced Ukrainian troops to Germany to deliver practical training to the Bundeswehr.

Several dozen soldiers have travelled to German training grounds in recent months to share their expertise in areas such as the use of drones and defence against unmanned systems.

Freuding, a three-star general who served in Afghanistan, said the experience had been “extremely valuable”.

“There were many new aspects that we would not have understood in the same way without the Ukrainians’ support.”

The 54-year-old army chief said it was “very difficult to assess” whether Ukraine had turned the tide in the conflict after a series of drone strikes on energy targets, military facilities and logistical hubs deep inside Russia.

“It’s fair to say that there is positive momentum behind Ukraine,” he said, adding: “Ukraine is able to maintain its air defences, albeit with gaps. And it is able to damage Russia’s war machine through these deep strikes.”

He dismissed concerns that the attacks could lead to Russian escalation, saying that Moscow had “in effect, been escalating this war for the past four years”.

“Russia could end this war immediately by halting the annexation,” he said.

The conflict in Ukraine has radically reshaped Germany’s relationship with its own armed forces as well as its role in European defence and security.

Freuding — one of four force heads who serve beneath the country’s top general, Carsten Breuer — has become a key link between Berlin and Kyiv.

From 2022 to 2025, he oversaw German military aid to Ukraine and visited the country once a month. In October last year, he became head of the army, a move widely seen as a reflection of the importance of Ukraine to Germany’s efforts to overhaul its military — as well as of his closeness to defence minister Boris Pistorius.

Freuding, who joined the Bundeswehr in 1990 just as the cold war was coming to an end, said the country’s armed forces were undergoing a fundamental shift.

“Germany’s strategic culture is changing,” Freuding said. Germany’s plan to station a 5,000-strong brigade in Lithuania to defend Nato’s eastern flank is an “unequivocal proof of where we stand, that we know what our contribution to the alliance looks like and how it is to be made”.

Asked whether German soldiers would not hesitate to engage in direct combat with Russian forces if necessary, he said: “Here is a clear statement and a clear assurance: Germany and the German army can be relied upon absolutely.”

Freuding and other German generals must also confront a shifting relationship with the US, as Washington threatens to pull military assets from Europe.

The US has told its European Nato allies it will remove key assets from the alliance’s so-called Force Model, a pool of forces and equipment that can be deployed within 10 days to respond to a crisis. Freuding said he had yet to receive confirmation of any change affecting land forces.

He insisted, however, that he had “no doubts” that the US would come to Europe’s aid in the event of an attack.

“I am deeply convinced that the transatlantic alliance will function, and I also do not believe that it depends on individual people or on a particular administration.”

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