BERLIN, February 12. /TASS/. The armed forces of Germany will start training Ukrainian servicemen to use Leopard 2 main battle tanks early next week, Der Spiegel reported citing own sources.

According to the report, published on Saturday, first groups of Ukrainina soldiers have already arrived in Germany. The course will take place at a training ground in Munster, Lower Saxony. Currently, the facility is used to train Ukrainians to use Marder tracked infantry fighting vehicles.

According to Der Spiegel, the course will take around 6-8 weeks, although a proper training requires several years. Training will be limited to basics of tank combat and to cohesion between Leopards and Marders.

If everything proceeds according to the plan, first Ukrainian Leopard 2 crews will appear on the battlefield in late March, the portal said.

Since the start of Russia’s special military operation in Ukraine on February 24, 2022, Germany trained 1,500 Ukrainian servicemen to use various military vehicles and weapons, including Gepard self-propelled anti-aircraft guns and Panzerhaubitze 2000 howitzers.

Germany said on January 25 it will be sending 14 Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine and allow other countries to reexport these vehicles. According to Pistorius, the Leopard 2 tanks will be shipped to Ukraine before the end of March. Plans to supply Western-made tanks to Kiev have also been announced by the UK, Norway, Poland, Slovakia and France. Kiev expects to receive up to 140 tanks from 12 states for a start. Ukraine is now requesting Germany to supply combat aircraft and submarines.