The German armed forces have ordered 18 new Leopard 2 tanks to replace vehicles sent to Ukraine earlier this year, a defense contractor said today.
Kraus-Maffei Wegmann said it had signed a contract for the Leopard 2A8 tanks with the Federal Office of Military Equipment, but did not provide financial details.
The budget committee of the German parliament approved funding of about 525 million euros on Wednesday.
The company said delivery of the new tanks is scheduled for 2025 and the deal includes options for an additional 105 Leopard 2A8 tanks.
Kraus-Maffei Wegmann will also produce 12 new howitzers for the German military as part of an option agreed in March, the company said.
Germany’s defense minister has urged new tanks to be acquired as soon as possible after the government agreed in late January to supply Ukraine with 14 Leopard 2A6 main battle tanks.
That number rose to 18 a few weeks later, when Germany and other nations agreed to muster two Leopard 2 tank battalions for Kiev.
Germany, Denmark and the Netherlands also decided to supply Ukraine with refurbished Leopard 1 tanks, an older model that the German army has not used for 20 years.
Portugal in turn provided three Leopard 2A6 tanks.
The military offensive launched by Russia in Ukraine on February 24, 2022 has so far led to the flight of more than 14.7 million people – 6.5 million internally displaced persons and more than 8.2 million to European countries -, according to the latest data from the UN. which classifies this refugee crisis as the worst in Europe since World War II (1939-1945).
Source: DN
