Germany says it won’t stop Poland from sending tanks to Ukraine
Mike Brest
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German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said over the weekend that the government “would not stand in the way” of other European allies from providing Ukraine with their own German-made Leopard 2 tanks.
Berlin has refused to provide its own tanks to date despite pleas from Ukrainian officials, showing a rift among Ukraine’s allies across the globe.
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Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said on Monday that his country would ask Berlin for permission to provide its tanks to Ukraine, but he wants the donation to be a part of a broader coalition.
“Even if we did not get this approval … we would still transfer our tanks together with others to Ukraine,” he explained, according to the Polish Press Agency. “The condition for us at the moment is to build at least a small coalition of countries.”
A day earlier, German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said their decision as to whether to provide their tanks would be made “soon.”
Pistorius and Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin denied on Friday that Berlin demanded the United States provide its M1 Abrams tanks to Ukraine as well, though Pentagon officials have said they are not the best fit for Ukraine’s needs due to operability and maintenance. The two leaders were among defense representatives from roughly 50 countries who convened for the eighth meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group at Ramstein Air Base in Germany.
“I think you heard the German minister of defense say earlier today that there’s no linkage between providing M1’s [Abrams] and providing Leopards, and I think he was pretty clear about that,” the secretary said. “So this notion of unlocking, you know, in my mind, it’s not an issue.”
Defense officials were hoping to get a deal sorted out at the meeting, but it ended without any such agreement.
Ukrainian leaders have repeatedly pressed allies for tanks as Russian forces and the Wagner Group engage in brutal fighting in the east, while officials have warned about an upcoming renewed Russian offensive. Additionally, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu announced last week that Russia will expand the size of its military to roughly 1.5 million between now and 2026. While their current manpower numbers are not clear, they previously announced intent to increase the military’s size to more than 1.1 million members by Jan. 1 of this year.
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Over the weekend, the foreign ministers of Estonia, Lithuania, and Latvia published a joint statement on the issue, urging Germany to “provide Leopard tanks to Ukraine now.”
“This is needed to stop Russian aggression, help Ukraine and restore peace in Europe quickly,” they wrote. “Germany as the leading European power has special responsibility in this regard.”