GGermany will transfer 14 Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine and allow other countries to re-export Berlin will transfer 14 tanks to Kiev and allow the allies to supply this equipment to Ukraine. Ukrainian crews will be trained in Germany, Germany will also help with logistics and ammunition supply
Leopard 2 tanks
Germany will send Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine and approve their re-export from other countries. The official representative of the German government, Steffen Hebestreit, said that Kiev will receive 14 Leopard 2 A6 tanks.
Berlin said that the measure was taken in cooperation with German partners, the goal is to quickly form two tank battalions for Ukraine, Die Welt reports.
“This decision corresponds to our well-known line of support for Ukraine to the best of our capabilities,” the words of Chancellor Olaf Scholz are quoted on the website of the German government. It clarifies that the training of Ukrainian crews will begin in Germany in the near future. In addition to training, German assistance includes solving logistics, ammunition supply and maintenance issues.
Leopard 2 is a development of the Munich-based Krauss-Maffei Wegmann concern.
The tank entered service in 1979, since then it has undergone several stages of modernization. Leopard 2A6 received a new 120 mm smoothbore Rheinmetall L55 cannon and other changes.
Spiegel wrote that Leopard 2A6 will be transferred to Ukraine from the reserves of the Bundeswehr (German armed forces), and in the medium term, other battle tanks from industrial stocks may be prepared for use. Berlin had previously refused for a long time to supply such equipment to Kiev alone. As the WSJ and Süddeutsche Zeitung wrote, Scholz, as a condition for the transfer of Leopard 2 to Ukraine, called US President Joe Biden the supply of American M1 Abrams by the States. According to Politico, Washington is discussing sending 30 tanks to Kiev.
As the New York Times reported, 13 European countries are armed with about 2 thousand Leopard tanks of various modifications. Poland, which requested German export permits, the Netherlands and Norway expressed their readiness to supply them to Ukraine.
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The representative of the Russian president Dmitry Peskov said that the transfer of tanks “will add problems” to Ukraine, but will not prevent the achievement of the goals of the Russian military operation. The head of the State Duma Defense Committee, Andrei Kartapolov, believes that by itself sending Leopard 2 to Kiev will not radically change the situation, but the preparation of new units in Poland or in Western Ukraine to participate in battles in the spring or closer to summer, then it will be serious.
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