Espreso correspondent Diana Polyova spoke with the general."I'm very glad to be back in Kyiv again, visiting Ukraine, our partners, and friends. Yesterday and today, I had productive meetings at the Ministry of Defense, the Ministry for Strategic Industries, and with other partners. I clearly stated and reassured everyone that Germany will continue to stand by Ukraine. We'll support Ukraine in the coming months and years, whatever it takes, and we plan to expand that support. You may know that Germany has committed over 38 billion euros in military aid to Ukraine, and this year alone we're allocating 9 billion euros to support the Ukrainian army. This isn't just funding, it's also about supplying equipment, supporting innovation, providing training, and of course, continuing political and diplomatic backing," the general said.Delivery of long-range missiles and drones"Yesterday (July 11, 2025 - ed.), we reached a major milestone in a project I’m particularly proud of. As promised earlier, our two defense ministers agreed on this in late May, we’re backing Ukraine’s long-range strike capabilities. Yesterday, we witnessed the signing of a deal between Ukraine’s Ministry of Defense and local industry to produce long-range weapons. Germany is financing the project, and the first missiles and drones will be delivered to the Ukrainian Armed Forces this month," Freuding said.He said he is personally proud of this achievement, stressing that Germany will stay with Ukraine until the end, until victory."We know what Ukraine’s people and Armed Forces are going through. That’s why you can count on Germany. We’ll keep going until the very end, until success, until we reach a long-term, sustainable, and just peace," the general said.Purchase of additional Patriot systemsGermany is set to finalize a deal with the U.S. tomorrow to buy two Patriot air defense systems for Ukraine."You may know our Defense Minister spoke with his U.S. counterpart, Pete Hegseth, six to eight weeks ago and proposed buying two Patriot systems for Ukraine, either from U.S. industry or existing stock. Negotiations have continued, including at government level. On Monday (July 14, 2025 - ed.), our minister will go to Washington, and we hope to finalize the deal. Then we’ll be able to tell you how soon the systems can be delivered and under what conditions," Freuding explained.German missiles for PatriotWhen asked about missile production for the Patriot systems, the general said:"We’ve started building a domestic production line in Germany for these missiles. The first batch won’t be ready before 2026, early 2027 at best. So there’s still time to resolve technical issues," Freuding said.Investment in interceptor dronesThe general also commented on Germany’s investments in interceptor drones for Ukrainian air defense."We discussed some promising projects with our Ukrainian partners, especially at the Ministry of Defense. It will take time to develop a clear plan and the right technical solutions for drones that can counter other drones. I can’t say yet when these capabilities will be available. But I promise we’ll move as fast as possible, the need is clear to us," Freuding said.When and how the next Ramstein will take placeFreuding also spoke about the timing and format of the next Ramstein meeting."It will be a virtual meeting, as agreed by the defense ministers so far. It will be led by the UK and Germany, just like the last Ramstein sessions, and will be scheduled within the next 10 days," said General Freuding, who oversees Germany’s military aid to Ukraine.