NEW YORK, February 16. /TASS/. The statement by German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius on problems with supplies of Leopard 2A6 tanks to Kiev indicates the failure of the West's policy to support Ukraine, Bloomberg said on Wednesday.
"The minister’s admission marks a setback in the bid by western allies to help the Ukrainian army deal with an expected intensification of fighting in coming weeks," the news agency said. It also noted that although Poland, according to Pistorius, had almost 30 tanks of the older Leopard 2A4 modification, "many of them are in poor condition and need repairs."
Earlier, the German defense chief told reporters in Brussels, where a meeting of NATO defense ministers took place, that Western countries would only be able to supply Kiev with half a battalion of the more modern Leopard 2A6 battle tanks. He also pointed out that no new commitments to supply Leopard 2A6 tanks were made at Wednesday's meeting of the so-called tank coalition. The German Social Democratic Party, a member of the ruling coalition, reported in late January that Kiev would receive two battalions (about 80 vehicles in total) of Leopard 2A6 tanks as soon as possible.
On January 25, the German government confirmed that it would send 14 Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine and would issue permits to other countries to re-export these vehicles. On February 7, the German Cabinet of Ministers approved the delivery of 178 Leopard 1A5 tanks to Kiev. The vehicles will be transferred from industrial stocks.