BERLIN, July 9. /TASS/. The German Armed Forces are considering purchasing hundreds of new Leopard 2 tanks as part of the country’s NATO commitments, the Bild newspaper reported.
"Not a single tank delivered to Ukraine has an active protection system against drones and anti-tank guided missiles. Therefore, the Ukrainians have to be very careful using these tanks," military analyst and former Italian officer Thomas Tyner told Bild.
According to the analyst, the situation in Ukraine is hardly comparable to the situation in Germany or NATO.
"A modern tank company, if covered by at least four anti-aircraft systems, can’t be stopped even by a simultaneous attack of a hundred drones," he said.
With Leopard 2 tanks, Germany, according to Tyner, "really needs to act on a large scale, rather than deal with little things."
"That means investing in research, development, testing, and then mass and rapid procurement of drone defense systems," Tyner stated.
Former senior NATO official Stefanie Babst supported the idea of buying new tanks for the Bundeswehr.
"Of course we need tanks," she said. "They are an important tool, critical for the defense of cities, villages and our country in accordance with NATO guidelines. However, without effective air defense systems, we can do almost nothing against drone and missile attacks. Germany urgently needs to improve this system."
The analyst called for building more unmanned weapons systems controlled by artificial intelligence.