Berlin
Green politician Anton Hofreiter calls for Leopard 2 tanks for Ukraine. France had previously announced that it would deliver reconnaissance tanks.
The chairman of the Europe Committee in the Bundestag, Anton Hofreiter, urges the delivery of numerous European main battle tanks to Ukraine. Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) must “now start a European initiative to deliver Leopard 2 tanks,” the Greens politician told our editorial team. After France’s decision to supply reconnaissance tanks, the argument of going it alone was finally invalid.
Leopard 2 would be used in more than ten European countries, stressed Hofreiter. “There are about 2000 active in Europe leopard 2 Only 10 percent delivered to Ukraine would be a great help,” he said. Ukraine needs more support in view of the ongoing Russian attacks. It is therefore more than welcome that France has decided to deliver reconnaissance tanks.
War against Ukraine: France wants to deliver “light battle tanks”.
Previously, the French President Emmanuel Macron AMX-10 RC reconnaissance tanks announced by Ukraine in the war against Russia. In a video address last night, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said: “France is taking defense support to Ukraine to a new level and I thank President Macron for this leadership.” He described the commitment as an important signal to other Western countries.
Macron announced the planned delivery of the tanks after a phone call with Zelenskyy. It is still unclear when and how many tanks France intends to deliver to Ukraine. It was said from the Élysée Palace that these were the first main battle tank Western design that would get to the Ukrainian armed forces. “This sends a clear signal to all our partners: there is no rational reason why western-style tanks have not been delivered to Ukraine so far,” praised Zelenskyy.
Ukraine Crisis – The most important news about the war
Ukraine had already received western tanks in the past. These were troop carriers like the US model M113, a smaller tracked vehicle. Germany also gave Ukraine 30 in the war against Russia anti-aircraft tank provided by the cheetah type. However, a fully-fledged western main battle tank such as the French Leclerc model or the German Leopard has not yet been obtained. Read here:
Kyiv: Dozens of Russians killed or injured in Zaporizhia Oblast
In the occupied part of the Zaporizhia region, the Ukrainian army said it was again able to strike Russian troops soldiers. In the occupied city of Tokmak in the southern Ukrainian region of Zaporizhia, 80 Russian soldiers were killed or injured in an offensive on Tuesday, the General Staff in Kyiv said. Read here: Russian soldiers send New Year’s text messages with fatal consequences
A spokesman for the Russian occupation administration of Zaporizhia, Vladimir Rogov, however, said the Ukrainian attack applied to Tokmak County Hospital. A military doctor and several patients were killed. In addition, pictures of a badly damaged building were shown. However, there was no independent confirmation of the information.
Ukraine has been reporting massive ones for days punches on Russian troop concentrations. According to Kiev sources, 400 enemy soldiers were killed in an attack on a Russian military barracks in Makiivka in the Donetsk region alone, and 500 in another offensive in the village of Chulakivka in Kherson. Moscow, on the other hand, has so far only admitted at least 89 deaths in its own ranks with a view to the Ukrainian artillery strikes on New Year’s Eve. (jd/with dpa)
Ukraine war – background and explanations for the conflict
More articles from this category can be found here: Politics
