Tank deliveries to Ukraine are accelerating. On the sidelines of the visit of the Secretary General of the United Nations, Antonio Guterres, the Polish Defense Minister announced the delivery “this week” of 10 Leopard tanks, in addition to the 4 already delivered.
A maintenance center in Ukraine
In January, Warsaw revealed its intention to supply Kiev with 14 Leopards, as well as around 60 tanks, including 30 PT-91s, a modernized version of the Soviet T-72. Since the start of the war, Poland has delivered 250 tanks made from most T-72.
The Polish minister added that Poland will establish a maintenance center for tanks used in Ukraine. This plan is to be discussed with his German counterpart, Boris Pistorius, “so that he uses his influence in German industry to deliver spare parts for Leopards.”
Train pilots in F-16
Separately, Poland said it was “ready” to train Ukrainian pilots on F-16 fighter jets, it added.
During his visit to Kiev on February 24, the anniversary of Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine, Mateusz Morawiecki said the latest proposed EU sanctions package against Russia was “too soft, too weak.”
Poland increased its own arms purchases and raised its military budget to more than 4% of Gross Domestic Product by 2023. The country is also home to more than a million Ukrainian refugees.
Source: BFM TV
