The government in Vienna has informed the Italian authorities about the need to obtain a special permit to send weapons to Ukraine through the territory of Austria, EFE reports.

“Embassy [italiană] informed the ministry [austriac] Ministry of the Interior that a permit under the Military Equipment Act is required if they are transported to a third country,” a spokesman for Vienna’s interior ministry, Gerhard Karner, said on Wednesday.

The ministry’s spokesman’s comments came after Austrian media reported earlier in the day that a train from Italy with 20 howitzers bound for Ukraine had crossed the country over the weekend without the necessary special permission.

Austria’s interior ministry confirmed to the press that it had been informed of the shipment, but said that Italy had only said that the howitzers would be sent to Poland, not that their final destination would be Ukraine.

What Austrian laws say about the transportation of weapons

Austrian law allows military transport between EU member states to transit through the country even without prior permission. But the Austrian Law on Military Equipment stipulates that a special permit must be obtained for shipment to third countries.

Austria’s interior ministry said it had therefore informed the Italian embassy that “if military materials are to be sent to a third country (…), this permission must be obtained before transport”.

He also explained that once the authorization request is submitted, it will be reviewed by the ministries of interior, foreign affairs and defense in Vienna.

The vehicle in question has sparked outrage in Italy in recent days after it was filmed speeding through a train station in the northeastern city of Udine on Friday.

Italy sent M109 howitzers to Ukraine

Italian Parliamentary Relations Minister Luca Kiriani told RAI that the vehicles are self-propelled artillery units intended for Ukraine as part of a military aid package approved by the previous government led by Mario Draghi and which were delivered just this week.

According to Italian mass media, a total of sixty howitzers have already been delivered to Kyiv or will be delivered in the near future.

Documents from the “Pentagon Leaks” series, which appeared on the Internet a week ago, show that Austria is one of two EU countries that have refused any military support to Ukraine, the other being Malta.

In February, Italy’s new prime minister, Giorgia Maloni, announced that Italy would send Spada and Skyguard air defense systems to Ukraine in addition to the SAMP/T-MAMBA systems it plans to transfer to France.

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