War in Ukraine: German government approves sending 187 Leopard 1 to Ukraine

Delivery of Leopard tanks to Ukraine will take place by mid-year at the earliest, Business Insider reports

The federal government has given the “green light” for the export of 187 Leopard 1 tanks to Ukraine, according to information from Business Insider magazine.

As noted in the publication, the tanks will come from the defence industry – 88 from Rheinmetall and 99 from the FGG group, however funding for their repair has not yet been secured, an issue expected to be settled in the coming weeks. The delivery of the Leopard 1 will take place by the middle of the year at the earliest, it is clarified, as the necessary repairs will last until then.

The possibility of delivering fighter jets to Ukraine is still – for the time being – rejected by all the parties. After the parties of the governing coalition, the secretary of the Parliamentary Group of the Christian Union (CDU/CSU) Torsten Frei considers that “at the moment there is no need for this”. We must do everything we can to shore up Ukrainian defences against Russian aggression, Frei added, stressing at the same time that “nothing should be ruled out in the medium term.”