Germany and Denmark Will Deliver 110 Leopard 1A5 Tanks to Ukraine
Germany says it will not be able to immediately replace the Leopard 2 tanks it is providing to Ukraine, says German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius.
Reportedly, the Leopard 2 tanks that Germany sent to Ukraine at the beginning of the year were destroyed in the recent battle between Ukrainian troops and Russia. Some of them were also captured by Russian troops.
Germany's delivery of advanced Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine after months of requests by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
"We will not be able to replace every tank that is now defunct," Pistorius said in an interview with broadcaster RTL.
As reported, Moscow on Tuesday said it had captured several US Leopard 2 Main Battle Tanks (MBT) and Bradley Infantry Fighting Vehicles (IFV) , releasing footage showing Russian troops observing the equipment.
Meanwhile, Ukrainian and German politicians have called for the rapid delivery of the tanks given the destruction of the ordnance.
Pistorius said Berlin would supply 100 of the less advanced Leopard 1 tanks by the end of this year.
The German government has so far delivered 18 Leopard 2 A6 tanks to Ukraine.
Since Russia invaded Ukraine in February last year, Germany has sent a wide variety of weapons to Kyiv, from air defenses to artillery systems.
Germany and Denmark will jointly transfer over a hundred German Leopard 1A5 tanks to the Armed Forces of Ukraine. This was announced by German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius.
Pistorius said Germany would resume supplies of Leopard 1A5 tanks starting in July.
In total, Germany plans to repair and deliver 110 tanks to Ukraine by the end of this year.
A total of 80 Leopard 1A5s have been purchased by Denmark from private company FFG.
Preparations have been underway at the Rheinmetall facility since February this year. The cost of repairing and upgrading the tank will be €3 million (3.24 million USD).
The Leopard 1A5 is a Main Battle Tank (MBT) variant of the Leopard 1 which is the predecessor of the Leopard 2 tank.
The Leopard 1 series tanks entered service with the German Armed Forces in 1965. The 1A5 variant entered production in the 1980s.