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Published On 21 Jan 2023
Germany is nether aggravated unit to supply Ukraine with its Leopard 2 tanks, which could person a important interaction against the Russian invasion.
European allies person already sent hundreds of modernised Soviet tanks to Ukraine since the warfare started astir 11 months ago. But Kyiv has pleaded for much precocious subject instrumentality to get the precocious manus successful the combat against Russia.
The United States and its allies failed to hold to supply the coveted German conflict tanks to Ukraine astatine a gathering connected Friday, arsenic Russia continued to contented threats the struggle whitethorn escalate successful Europe.
Leopard 2 tanks are considered 1 of the best-performing models worldwide and are wide utilized crossed Europe.
Why are the Leopards truthful coveted?
Leopard was archetypal produced successful the precocious 1970s to regenerate the American M48 Patton and soon became renowned for its firepower, mobility, and sturdy armour.
Leopard 2 is “sort of similar the [Volkswagen] Golf of the German vessel industry: an all-rounder with satellite recognition”, according to the German paper Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung.
About 3,500 of the 60-tonne conflict tanks, developed by German weapons shaper Krauss-Maffei Wegmann (KMW), person been produced.
The tanks are equipped with a 120mm smoothbore cannon and tin determination astatine speeds of up to 70 kilometres (44 miles) per hr with a scope of 500km (310 miles). They besides supply “all-round protection” for troops from threats specified arsenic mines, anti-tank fire, and improvised explosive devices, according to the manufacturer.
The past 4 models produced are inactive successful usage – from the 2A4 to the 2A7.
What is stopping the supply?
Germany has been reluctant to supply the tanks to Ukraine due to the fact that of the anti-militarism presumption it adopted aft World War II. However, unit has been mounting connected Germany and it has been enactment successful a hard position.
Poland has expressed willingness to nonstop 14 Leopard tanks to Ukraine arsenic portion of an planetary coalition. Finland said it is not opposed to shipments.
But countries cannot nonstop the tanks without Germany’s support arsenic they are supplied nether a German licence.
Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki has suggested Poland could nonstop Leopard tanks to Ukraine without Germany’s blessing.
It is not wide yet however rapidly immoderate tanks would arrive. German weapons shaper Rheinmetall, which produces the Leopard’s cannon and electronics and has dozens of older models, has said it would not beryllium capable to present immoderate of the tanks until 2024 due to the fact that of the request to refurbish and repair them.
We, 🇱🇻 🇪🇪 🇱🇹 Foreign Ministers, telephone connected Germany to supply Leopard tanks to Ukraine now. This is needed to halt Russian aggression, assistance Ukraine and reconstruct bid successful Europe quickly. Germany arsenic the starring European powerfulness has peculiar work successful this regard.
— Edgars Rinkēvičs (@edgarsrinkevics) January 21, 2023
What is Russia saying?
Some analysts person said supplying the Leopards could further escalate the struggle with Russia, if it were construed arsenic the nonstop engagement of NATO countries successful the war.
Russia has warned of an “extremely dangerous” escalation if NATO were to deploy high-tech weapons. The instauration of specified weapons, according to Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov would bring the warfare to “a full caller level, which, of course, volition not bode good from the constituent of presumption of planetary and pan-European security.”
Anatoly Antonov, Moscow’s ambassador to the US, said Russia would retaliate if Ukraine were to usage Western-supplied weapons to people Russia oregon the Crimea Peninsula.
Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, present a elder information official, warned the West’s continued enactment for Ukraine could pb to atomic war.
What interaction could the Leopards have?
Supplying Ukraine with astir 100 tanks could marque a “significant” quality successful the war, according to the UK-based International Institute for Strategic Studies.
“An service tin interruption done force lines and enactment an extremity to a agelong play of trench warfare,” Rheinmetall CEO Armin Papperger told Germany’s Bild newspaper. “With the Leopard soldiers tin beforehand dozens of kilometres astatine a time.”
But Ukrainian troops would request to beryllium rapidly trained to usage the equipment, whose operations are overmuch much analyzable than the Soviet-era tanks.
The Ukrainian subject would besides beryllium trying to get up to velocity connected different caller hardware acceptable to get successful Ukraine, including precocious pledged French AMX-10 RC airy tanks, German Marder infantry vehicles, and Bradley warring vehicles from the United States.
Source
:
Al Jazeera and quality agencies
English (US)