German Chancellor Scholz leads the way: Germany supplies Ukraine with 14 Leopard 2 A6 main battle tanks. The US is also considering a turnaround.
Vienna/Berlin. German and Russian main battle tanks will soon be able to fire at each other on Ukraine’s battlefields: after months of hesitation, the government of Olaf Scholz has cleared the way for the delivery of Leopard 2 tanks. Specifically, Germany is supplying Ukraine with 14 Leopard 2-A6 main battle tanks from Bundeswehr stockpiles, government spokesman Steffen Hebestreit confirmed on Wednesday.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz announced this in the Federal Cabinet. “The decision follows our well-known line of supporting Ukraine to the best of our ability. We are acting in close international coordination,” the chancellor said, according to the statement. The aim is to quickly assemble two tank battalions with Leopard 2 tanks, the government spokesman said.
The delivery of the company with 14 Leopard 2 A6 tanks is the first step, Ukrainian soldiers must be trained in Germany as soon as possible. The package also included ammunition, logistics and systems maintenance.
Furthermore, the government in Berlin is allowing other NATO partners to deliver their own Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine. The turnaround in the German chancellery was already apparent on Tuesday night, and the official confirmation took place on Wednesday.
Huge pressure on the government
Months of debate preceded the decision. In recent days, pressure on the German government over the tank issue has increased enormously. Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki made serious accusations against Berlin: “We can see that they don’t want to help Ukraine to defend itself on a wider level”, he complained and implicitly threatened that Poland would surrender, if necessary, its Leopard tanks to the Soviet Union without German approval to send to Ukraine.
The Poles led an alliance to transfer Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine. Other states, including the Scandinavian ones, want to follow suit.
The supply of modern Western main battle tanks to Ukraine has long been taboo. However, this month, Britain announced that it would send Challenger 2 tanks to Ukraine. As a result, Scholz was also pressured by the East European NATO countries, the Kyiv government and the coalition partner to accept the transfer of German Leopard tanks. According to reports, even US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin had a heated argument with Scholz’s closest confidant, Chancellor Wolfgang Schmidt. Consequently, Austin wanted to persuade the Germans to at least issue an export license to third countries (as will be the case now).
With regard to the supply of qualitatively new weapons systems from the Bundeswehr’s stockpiles, Scholz always emphasized that he only wanted to act together with the US – as with the delivery of several rocket launchers or armored vehicles. On Tuesday, there were reports that the US is indeed considering the delivery of Abrams-type main battle tanks. US President Joe Biden is inclined to give Ukraine a “significant number” of Abrams tanks, he said. The US has always refused to supply Abrams tanks for practical reasons. US tanks need to be transported across the Atlantic, are more expensive to maintain and consume a lot of fuel.
Three-digit tank number required
Ukraine has been asking for Western-style main battle tanks for months to fight Russian attackers. The first official request came just a week after the outbreak of war, in early March last year. The frontline in eastern Ukraine has barely moved in recent weeks. With the war tanks, Ukraine hopes to go back on the offensive and regain more territory. At the same time, an offensive from Russia is feared for spring.
The Institute for Strategic Studies estimates that at least 100 Leopard 2 tanks are needed to have any significant effect on the fighting in Ukraine.
(ag./red.)