Germany promised Ukraine 100 Leopard 1 tanks in the spring. However, problems arose with the supply of old battle tanks.
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Thus, Kyiv informed the German defense department that a new batch of ten Leopard 1 tanks needs significant repairs. The German publication Spiegel reported this today, September 19, citing informed sources.
According to the publication, the defects of the tanks were apparently so great that the Ukrainian government refused to accept them several days ago, since Ukraine has neither qualified technicians nor spare parts for this.
It is noted that the German Ministry of Defense sent a special group to Poland, where the tanks were, to inspect them. As a result, it was discovered that the tanks “were already so badly worn out during the training of Ukrainian soldiers in Germany that they needed repairs.”
In addition, inquiries to the Ukrainian army showed that the problem was known – several Leopard 1 battle tanks, which were transferred to Kyiv in July, had already failed due to similar defects.
According to the publication, the German Ministry of Defense is trying to solve problems in providing military assistance to Ukraine as soon as possible. It is noted that, in particular, the following difficulties arose:
- due to the limited number of technical personnel and spare parts, delays in the delivery of weapons may occur;
- There are not yet enough Ukrainian technicians trained to carry out minor repairs on the Leopard 1. The technicians who will be trained in Germany will subsequently train other technicians in Ukraine.
This spring, the German government announced that it would supply Ukraine with 100 Leopard 1A5 main battle tanks. These vehicles were withdrawn from Bundeswehr service in 2003 and hundreds of them have been in storage since then.
Source: Spiegel
Denmark trains Ukrainian tank crews on Leopard 1A5
Source: Racurs
I am David Wyatt, a professional writer and journalist for Buna Times. I specialize in the world section of news coverage, where I bring to light stories and issues that affect us globally. As a graduate of Journalism, I have always had the passion to spread knowledge through writing.