The federal chancellor demands that the United States in turn supply Abrams tanks
Chancellor Olaf Scholz has yielded to international pressure and is ready to supply Ukraine with the coveted Leopard 2 tanks, produced in Germany and considered the most advanced in the world, several local media reported today. However, Scholz apparently conditions the shipment of these heavy weapons to significantly improve Ukraine’s counter-offensive capability for the United States by doing the same and supplying Kiev with Abrams-type tanks. This is evident from a telephone conversation that the Chancellor had with US President Joe Biden. In Washington, Secretary of Defense Colin Kahl had rejected his country supplying Ukraine with Abrams tanks because of the complexity of the handling and because they would do little to help the country under attack.
The tabloid Bild further expands on the conditions imposed by Scholz by ensuring that he also demands that other European countries join the tank supply operation that the United States and Germany would lead by delivering Leopard 2 into the hands of their armed forces. The German head of government wants the United States and Europe to act in a coordinated manner so that Russian President Vladimir Putin does not succeed in dividing the Atlantic Alliance. The debate on the delivery of the modern battle tanks of the German development will focus on the summit that the Western Allies are celebrating this Friday at the American air base of Ramstein, in the German Palatinate, considered the largest in the world outside its own territory .
By refusing to supply Ukraine with Abrams tanks, Kahl claimed they would be no help on the battlefield. It is “a very complex armament”, expensive, requiring long and complicated training for its handling and with exaggerated fuel consumption by its turbine engines. “It is not the system with the easiest maintenance,” said the American politician, although he did not rule out that this type of tanks will be supplied to Ukraine in the future. Washington’s chief of defense, Lloyd Austin, also noted that his country does not want to supply Ukraine with weapons that “they can’t repair, can’t maintain and can’t afford in the long run, because they don’t help”. Austin insisted it’s not about making token supplies, but delivering to Ukraine “which really means help on the battlefield”.
Since the start of the war almost a year ago, Olaf Scholz has stressed time and time again that Germany will never act alone and that when it comes to taking important steps, it will always do so in consultation with its allies, especially with Washington. and Paris. A position he defended again on Wednesday at the economic summit in Davos. This has not prevented the pressure on Berlin to deliver Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine to increase significantly in recent days. About 20 countries in the world have this type of heavy battle tank produced in Germany and they are all required to ask permission from Berlin to supply them to other countries, a clause that appears in all sales contracts. The Leopard 2 is considered one of the best and most effective tanks in the world and Ukraine demands that it break the front with the Russian forces, which has now turned into a static war of position.
This Wednesday, the European Parliament joined the pressure on Scholz to give in to the shipment of these weapons. The Chancellor must set up a consortium of countries “without further delay” to make these tanks available to Ukraine, according to a resolution that was approved by a large majority in the Strasbourg Chamber. In addition, Poland and Finland have already announced their willingness to supply Leopard 2 units from their own armies to the invaded country. In turn, Britain recently announced that it will send its own Challenger 2 tanks to Ukraine, similar in their characteristics to the Leopard 2.
Source: La Verdad
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