German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has agreed to supply Ukraine with Leopard 2 battle tanks, according to media reports. The news comes as Washington is poised to start a process that would eventually send dozens of M1 Abrams tanks to Ukraine’s front lines. Russia’s ambassador to the US said the possible delivery of Abrams tanks by Washington would be “another blatant provocation” against Moscow. Germany’s Defence Minister Ursula Scholz has agreed to send Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy a fleet of Leopard 2 battle tanks. Until now, the US has only sent M1 Abrams tanks, citing logistical and maintenance challenges.
Ukraine has been calling for Western-designed battle tanks for months to fight the invading Russian forces. The US administration appears to be meeting the German Chancellor’s demand that Germany needs to be in lockstep with Washington on Ukraine. Ukraine’s top military official hails Germany’s decision to pledge hundreds of tanks as a potential game-changer. So far, Ukraine has only received Soviet-made heavy tanks that were in the inventory of Eastern European NATO countries. No Western-designed heavy tanks have yet been delivered to Ukraine for combat against Russian forces. Only Finland and Poland had so far publicly signalled their willingness to deliver them to Ukraine.
