All 18 Leopard 2 tanks promised by Germany have arrived in Ukraine
Photo: AP/Michael Sohn
According to Spiegel magazine, Germany has handed over to the Ukrainian side all 18 Leopard 2 battle tanks that were promised. It is also reported that 40 Marder infantry fighting vehicles have arrived in the country.
According to the publication, the last tanks were exported from Germany at the end of last week and were recently handed over at the Ukrainian border.
In addition to the Leopard 2, Germany also transferred to Ukraine about 40 Marder infantry fighting vehicles promised earlier. The German government keeps the exact route of arms deliveries a secret for security reasons.
According to Spiegel sources, Ukraine received Leopard tanks with "a large package of weapons and spare parts."
During the past two months, the Bundeswehr has trained Ukrainian soldiers to use complex weapons systems under an accelerated program. Also, Ukrainian technicians, who were trained by technical service specialists from among German military personnel, arrived in Germany.
Leopard 2 is considered one of the most modern main battle tanks on the world arms market. It outperforms russian tanks mainly due to its more powerful firepower, which usually allows it to destroy enemy targets with the first shot.
The challenge, however, can be the system's complexity, which requires very intensive maintenance. Therefore, Germany wants to open a maintenance and repair center in a country neighboring Ukraine.
At the same time, the German government has refused to comment on information about the possible arrival of Leopard 2 tanks in Ukraine, reports DW. The list of weapons supplied to Kyiv will be updated on Tuesday, March 28.
Last week, Germany transferred to Ukraine the following:
- 70 MG3 machine guns, which are installed on Leopard tanks, Marder infantry fighting vehicles, and Dachs armored vehicles (previously, there were 30 such machine guns, now there are 100 in total)
- 3 Dachs engineering machines ( similar were not transferred before).
- Spare parts for Leopard and Marder.
- Thirty drone detection systems (in total, Ukraine now has 90 such systems).
Drones and Dachs were supplied by representatives of the industry, the rest – from the Bundeswehr's stocks. The MG3 is the standard machine gun of the Bundeswehr.
From January 1, 2022, to March 24, 2023, Germany transferred approximately 2.7 billion euros of military aid to Ukraine.
On March 8, German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius announced that the main battle tanks promised by Germany and Portugal would arrive in Ukraine by the end of March.
"I can tell you that I have just learned that 18 German Leopard 2A6 tanks and three Portuguese tanks may arrive in Ukraine already this month," Boris Pistorius said during an informal meeting of EU defense ministers in Stockholm.
The main facts about the transfer of Leopard tanks to Ukraine:
- On January 25, Chancellor Olaf Scholz announced that the German government agreed to transfer Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine and allowed re-export to other countries. According to him, Germany would continue to increase military support for Ukraine.
- On February 4, a plane carrying the first German-made Leopard 2 tank for the Ukrainian Defense Forces left Canada for Poland.
- On February 25, Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson announced that Sweden would join the international "tank coalition" and deliver Leopard 2 battle tanks to Ukraine.
