Ukrainian troops begin training on Leopard 2 tanks

Europe, News February 7, 2023 , by IRIA No Comments

Ukrainian forces have begun training on the Leopard 2 tanks ahead of the delivery of the tanks from Germany and other European countries.

Ukraine’s Defence Minister Oleksii Reznikov announced about the recent progress after some European media outlets said that NATO countries were reneging on their Leopard 2 delivery promises to Ukraine.

According to Poland’s Defense Minister Mariusz Blaszczak, a group of Ukrainian soldiers and military engineers is already training to operate the German-built Leopard 2 tanks in Poland. While he did not specify how much time it would require for the training to be complete, he said that it would be “not a question of days and not of months,” but “a question of weeks.” He also rejected the media reports that said Poland wanted to deliver the tanks without the required crew training.

Blaszczak traveled to Kyiv last week to meet with his Ukrainian counterpart and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as he reassured Poland’s commitment to providing Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine. Ukrainian Defense Minister Olexiy Resnikov and President Volodymyr Zelensky thanked him for Poland’s key role in making the delivery of Leopard tanks to Ukraine possible.

Kyiv is urgently waiting for the deliveries of tanks and other heavy weapons from its western allies as it braces for a possible wave of new Russian attacks in the coming spring. Several of Ukraine’s allies responded to its plea for heavy weapons and tanks. The U.S. announced it would send at least 31 Abrams M1 tanks to Ukraine while European owners of the Leopard 2 tanks announced they would send their older German-made tanks to Ukraine after receiving a heads-up from Germany.

There are around 2,000 Leopard 2 tanks stocked across over a dozen European countries that can be sent to Ukraine. Since the tanks are German-made, other countries or private companies willing to send them to Ukraine needed the German government’s approval.

*^{A Polish army instructor wearing a white helmet talks to Polish soldiers during a Leopard 2 tank repair training in Swietoszow, Poland. (Image Credit: Reuters)}*

Germany has announced that it would not stop its European allies from sending German-made Leopard tanks to Ukraine for its war efforts against Russia. After weeks of sustaining intense pressure from its allies and partners, Germany also announced that it would approve the delivery of Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine as part of a coalition of European countries.

The German government is also considering buying back 15 of its Gepard tanks, which had been sold to Qatar and sending them forward to Ukraine. However, Ukraine may face difficulty in operating Gepard tanks since its ammunition is in Switzerland, which has so far refused to re-export weaponry to Ukraine on the grounds that it would breach its position of neutrality. However, some Swiss lawmakers are pushing for the country to reconsider its position.