Germany could possibly transfer up to 15 Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine this year
If the German government decides to supply Ukraine with Leopard 2 tanks in the near future, it could possibly be able to hand over 10 to 15 repaired tanks by the end of 2023. Source: The Frankfurte Allgemeine Zeitung newspaper was informed about this by sources in the defence sector, European Pravda reports. Details: The sources said that delivery is possible as early as October or November 2023, but only if orders are placed immediately.
If the German government approves the orders, then from the third quarter it will be possible to supply one Leopard 2 per week, according to the sources. FAZ also learned that Germany is currently considering the possibility of supplying Ukraine with 29 more Leopard 2 tanks, which are currently intended for Slovakia and the Czech Republic. But the governments in Prague and Bratislava will have to agree to such a redistribution.
Slovakia and the Czech Republic could then receive about three tanks a month from the beginning of 2024 instead of deliveries this year.
Moreover, German arms companies Rheinmetall and Krauss-Maffei Wegmann may deliver additional Marder infantry fighting vehicles, Fuchs armoured vehicles and older Leopard 1 main battle tanks before the end of the year, according to industry sources. Companies currently have 88 scrapped Leopard 1A5s, of which 80 can still be repaired. Of these tanks, 20 can be ready "in eight months from the moment of the order".
As for the 40 Marder infantry fighting vehicles that the German government has already promised to Ukraine, industry sources say that 20 of them could be delivered by the end of April. The rest should come from the warehouses of the Bundeswehr. After that, subject to placing an order, it would be possible to provide 10 units per month starting in July.
In addition, from the middle of the year, Ukraine can receive 40 Fuchs armoured vehicles of new production.
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Background:
- Last week Poland announced that it is ready to hand over a company of Leopard main battle tanks to Ukraine within the framework of a coalition with partners. But on Friday, the German government said that it had not yet received an official request from Poland to supply the Leopard main battle tank to Ukraine.
- At the same time, according to Bloomberg sources, the German federal government this week may announce a decision regarding the supply of Western tanks to Ukraine.
- The other day Spiegel wrote that the German weapon concern Rheinmetall will not be able to deliver Leopard tanks to Ukraine before 2024, even if the German government quickly decides on their transfer.
- Ukraine is particularly interested in receiving Leopard tanks, as there are more than 2,000 of them in Europe and they are in service with 13 countries.
But their re-export requires Berlin's permission, and Germany is worried about the danger of an escalation of the conflict.
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