Germany, Denmark and the Netherlands will give Kiev at least 100 Leopard 1 tanks – #Germany #Denmark #Netherlands #give #Kiev #Leopard #tanks
BERLIN, Feb 7 (Reuters) – Denmark, Germany and the Netherlands at least 100 to restore old Leopard 1 tanks from industrial stocks and supply them to Ukraine funds will connect.
Countries of Ukraine in the coming months at least 100 Leopard 1 A5 tank, including training, logistical support, spare parts and ammunition package, they said.
Dutch Defense Minister Casja Ollongren said that the Leopard 1 is “definitely still suitable” for combat use, despite being an older model.
“It’s a really tested tank,” he told the Netherlands’ NOS national broadcast. “They are being fixed and ready for combat, so they will definitely be useful for the Ukrainians, but also a number of Russia it will be better than tanks”.
According to the statement, the details of the deal are still to be worked out with the companies that own the tanks.
It was not immediately clear the exact number of tanks and whether there would be a cost sharing with the companies. Germany has about 180 Leopard 1 tanks owned by arms maker Rheinmetall ( RHMG.DE ) and a company in northern Germany.
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In total, the German government allowed the export of 178 Leopard 1 tanks to Ukraine.
The joint statement of the German Ministry of Economy and Defense says: “How many of these tanks actually of the day it depends on the amount of necessary restoration work that can be handed over to Ukraine at the end”.
The decision was made during the visit of the new German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius to Kyiv the president Vladimir Zelensky and it was announced during the meeting with his colleague Oleksii Reznikov.
Reznikov On his Twitter page, he posted a photo of himself with a scale model of Leopard in a shop window with Pistorius: “The first” Leopard 2 arrived in Kyiv.
Denmark, Germany and the Netherlands said the Leopard 1 initiative was open to future partners, adding that Belgium had “shown an initial interest in participating”.
Earlier, the head of the German arms manufacturer Rheinmetall went to Ukraine this year 20He said that he will send 25 Leopards, and a total of 88 Leopard 1 tanks will be sent next year.
The move follows the German government’s decision last month to withdraw more modern Leopard 2 main battle tanks from its army reserves amid mounting international pressure.
Reporting by Sabine Siebold, Toby Sterling, Thomas Escritt and Andreas Rinke; Edited by Rachel More, Mark Porter, and Cynthia Osterman
Our standards: Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
2023-02-07 22:59:30
Source – reuters
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