The 18 Leopard 2 tanks promised to Volodymyr Zelensky by the Olaf Scholz government have already arrived in Ukraine. The last left the country at the end of last week and have already been delivered to the Ukrainian border, as reported by Der Spiegel, citing security circles and later confirmed by the Chancellor herself during a visit to the Netherlands. In addition to the Leopard 2 battle tanks, Berlin recently sent around 40 Marder infantry fighting vehicles to routes that were kept secret for security reasons.
It took Berlin just two months to deliver on its promise to deliver the modern Leopard tanks requested by Kiev. It was late January when the Secretary of State reversed his previous policy of caution about the supply of these armored vehicles, which can bring a qualitative advantage on the battlefield. Scholz was reluctant to authorize delivery of the Leopards on his own, fearing a possible reaction from Moscow and despite pressure from allies such as Poland. After negotiations with his partners, particularly the United States, which at the same time announced the delivery of 31 of its M1 Abrams tanks, the Secretary of State gave the go-ahead for the deployment.
The original plan was to equip two battalions, each with 31 Leopard tanks, partly with other European Union partners. Berlin should provide 14, Scholz announced, but it quickly became clear that they were not enough to form a battalion, and the number rose to 18. For two months, the Bundeswehr has been training Ukrainian soldiers in tanks from management with an accelerated training program. Technicians from the Ukrainian Armed Forces have also traveled to Germany to learn how to service this equipment, which Berlin is supplying with a large package of ammunition and spare parts.
At a press conference in Munster, where Ukrainian soldiers practiced live fire two weeks ago, German instructors said they were very satisfied with their students. “They have not only proven to be incredibly motivated, but also very capable of learning, both in terms of technology and functionality,” says Björn Schulz, commander of the Panzertruppenschule Münster (Lower Saxony).
The Leopard 2 are modern and agile armored vehicles that the Ukrainian army has been demanding for months to defend against Russian aggression and retake territory captured by the invading forces. It’s a tank with great firepower, capable of eliminating enemy targets on the first try and also firing while on the move. It was urgent for Kiev to receive the tanks as soon as possible in order to better face the new offensive that the Kremlin, according to NATO, is preparing for this spring.
The complexity of the Leopard 2 makes its maintenance a challenge. According to “Spiegel”, Berlin is considering setting up a tank repair station in a country neighboring Ukraine. In addition to the main battle tanks, Germany has also sent two Buffalo armored vehicles, specialized recovery vehicles for servicing the Leopard 2, in which it has also trained Ukrainian soldiers.
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Federal Defense Minister Boris Pistorius has stressed that Germany has delivered four more tanks than originally planned. “As promised, our tanks reached our Ukrainian friends on time. I’m sure they can make a crucial contribution at the front.” The first battalion was formed with Sweden and Portugal, the minister added in defense statements.
Berlin later plans to deliver several Leopard 1s, which are currently being repaired and overhauled at their German manufacturers’ plants. According to Pistorius, the first 25 should arrive before the summer; around 80 by the end of the year and at least 100 by 2024. Germany, Denmark and the Netherlands are funding the overhaul of these older generation tanks, which many countries keep in their arsenals.
Armies from 15 European countries have a total of 2,405 units of the German Leopard 2 tank in their arsenals in various models and configurations. According to figures from the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) analysis center, Germany has 521. Although countries like Poland have their own leopards, they needed permission from the manufacturing country, in this case Germany, to re-export them to Kiev. The Scholz government made the decision to allow it the same day it announced the delivery of one of its own.
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