Train With Italian Artillery Pieces Passes Austria Sans Permit

A train from Italy loaded with 20 howitzers for Ukraine passed through Austria over the weekend and apparently did not have a permit, Austrian daily Kleine Zeitung disclosed, Timo Kirez reported for the Turkish Anadolu News Agency.

Photo Insert: A train carried out transport of M109 self-propelled howitzers from Italy to Poland.

The Austrian Interior Ministry confirmed to the Austrian news agency APA on Wednesday that on the part of "the Italian embassy in Vienna, it was communicated that a train will carry out a transport of M109 self-propelled howitzers from Italy to Poland."

Transits between EU countries under certain conditions are exempt from authorization and do not require notification or approval, an Interior Ministry spokesman said.

"The export is war material, which does not need a permit/authorization according to the Austrian War Material Act under Section 5(2a), and there is an export and import permit from both EU countries for this transport," the spokesman added.

However, the Austrian War Material Act also requires a permit for the transport of war material to a third country. This is the case here, as the self-propelled howitzers are not intended for Poland, but for Ukraine.

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