https://sputnikglobe.com/20230406/enough-is-enough-greece-reiterates-it-wont-supply-leopard-2-tanks-to-ukraine--1109209400.html
Enough is Enough? Greece Reiterates It Won’t Supply Leopard 2 Tanks to Ukraine
Enough is Enough? Greece Reiterates It Won’t Supply Leopard 2 Tanks to Ukraine
Sputnik International
Some NATO members previously provided Kiev with the Leopard 2s as part of the West’s military aid to Ukraine amid the ongoing Russian special military operation there.
2023-04-06T13:55+0000
2023-04-06T13:55+0000
2023-04-06T13:55+0000
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Greek Defense Minister Nikolaos Panagiotopoulos has reiterated Athens’ unwillingness to send Leopard 2A6 tanks to Ukraine.Speaking at a session of the parliament’s committee for national defense and foreign affairs on Thursday, Panagiotopoulos recalled that Greece had already provided Ukraine with several infantry fighting vehicles and ammunition of various calibers.He spoke after Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis told a Japanese newspaper that Athens would not send the Leopard 2 to Kiev for “the simple reason that they are absolutely necessary for our defense posture.”In January, Berlin said it would send 14 Leopard 2A6 main battle tanks to Ukraine, also agreeing to provide re-export licenses for other countries willing to supply these German-made armored vehicles.Since then, Warsaw, Ottawa, Lisbon, and Oslo have also said they could deliver various modernizations of Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine, with up to 14 tanks coming from Poland, four such vehicles from Canada, three Leopard 2s from Portugal, and eight from Norway.Greece, which purportedly possesses 180 Leopard 2 tanks, has never signaled its readiness to deliver them to Ukraine.The Russian Foreign Ministry said that NATO countries “play with fire" by supplying weapons to Kiev, and that any convoy of arms for Ukraine will become a legitimate target for Russian forces. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, for his part, underscored that NATO allies' arming and training Ukrainian forces amounts to direct involvement in the standoff.
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athens’ unwillingness to send the leopard 2a6 tanks to ukraine, germany's delivery of a batch of leopard 2a6 main battle tanks to kiev, russian special military operation in ukraine
athens’ unwillingness to send the leopard 2a6 tanks to ukraine, germany's delivery of a batch of leopard 2a6 main battle tanks to kiev, russian special military operation in ukraine
Enough is Enough? Greece Reiterates It Won’t Supply Leopard 2 Tanks to Ukraine
Some NATO members previously provided Kiev with the Leopard 2s as part of the West’s military aid to Ukraine amid the ongoing Russian special military operation there. Moscow has repeatedly warned that such assistance would only prolong the conflict.
Greek Defense Minister Nikolaos Panagiotopoulos has reiterated Athens’ unwillingness to send
Leopard 2A6 tanks to Ukraine.
Speaking at a session of the parliament’s committee for national defense and foreign affairs on Thursday, Panagiotopoulos recalled that Greece had already provided Ukraine with several infantry fighting vehicles and ammunition of various calibers.
“From the very beginning, our position was clear and unambiguous. We deliver what we can deliver, and we don't supply anything that could weaken our own defense capabilities even in the slightest degree, given Greece’s national security challenges," the minister added.
He spoke after Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis told a Japanese newspaper that Athens would not send the Leopard 2 to Kiev for “the simple reason that they are absolutely necessary for our defense posture.”
"We've also always made it very clear that we are willing to support Ukraine but not at the expense of our defense capabilities," the PM added.
In January, Berlin said it would send 14 Leopard 2A6
main battle tanks to Ukraine, also agreeing to provide re-export licenses for other countries willing to supply these German-made armored vehicles.
Since then, Warsaw, Ottawa, Lisbon, and Oslo have also said they could deliver various modernizations of Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine, with up to 14 tanks coming from Poland, four such vehicles from Canada, three Leopard 2s from Portugal, and eight from Norway.
26 January 2023, 17:34 GMT
Greece, which purportedly possesses 180 Leopard 2 tanks, has never signaled its readiness to deliver them to Ukraine.
Western countries ramped up their military aid to Kiev shortly after Russia began its special military operation in Ukraine. Moscow has repeatedly warned that the US and its allies that sending military assistance to Kiev only prolongs the Ukrainian conflict.
The Russian Foreign Ministry said that NATO countries “play with fire" by
supplying weapons to Kiev, and that any convoy of arms for Ukraine will become a legitimate target for Russian forces. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, for his part, underscored that NATO allies' arming and training Ukrainian forces amounts to direct involvement in the standoff.
