Ukraine is confident Britain will send around 10 Challenger 2 tanks to Kyiv
Key takeaways:
- Kyiv expects the decision on heavy armour will pave the way for Germany to permit the re-export of Leopard 2s.
Ukraine is sure Britain will reveal its plans to send around 10 Challenger 2 tanks to Kyiv soon, a move it expects will help Germany finally let its Leopard 2s be re-exported to the embattled nation.
A formal report is expected on Monday, but Ukrainian sources meant they understood that Britain had already decided in favour as pressure peaks on Berlin ahead of a conference of western defence ministers next Friday.
Rishi Sunak to take the final decision:
Earlier this week, it appeared that Britain was considering providing Ukraine with the tanks, following months of pleas from Kyiv – with a final decision in the hands of the prime minister, Rishi Sunak.
A handful of Challenger 2s, taken from the UK’s fleet of 227, would not make much difference on the battleground. Still, it would be the first time any western government has decided to send its own heavy armour to Ukraine.
It is expected in Ukraine and elsewhere, this will pave the way for Germany to track. There are almost 2,000 Leopard 2s in Europe, held by armies in 13 nations, but Berlin’s approval is needed before any of the German-made war machines can be re-exported to Ukraine.
German sources said Leopard 2 decision was fraught with governmental processes because of the legacy of the second world war. Still, what would allow the chancellor, Olaf Scholz, is “other allied nations making similar decisions” to provide tanks.
Poland’s president, Andrzej Duda, spoke on Wednesday during a visit to the western Ukrainian metropolis of Lviv that a firm of Leopard tanks “will be handed over as part of coalition-building”.
