If Poland takes a decision to send German-made Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine, Berlin will not stop Warsaw from doing so, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said.
When asked in an interview for French television on January 22 what Berlin’s response would be if Poland were to go ahead with the delivery, Baerbock said: "For the moment the question has not been asked, but if we were asked we would not stand in the way."
Baerbock added:
"We know how important these tanks are and this is why we are discussing this now with our partners.”
The Foreign Minister's words appear to strike a quite different tone from earlier remarks by German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, made at a summit on Sunday. Scholz had insisted that any decision on weapons deliveries would be made in full coordination with allies, including Washington.
"We will continue to provide Ukraine with all the support it needs for as long as necessary. Together, as Europeans, to defend our European peace project," he said while on a visit to Paris to celebrate the 60the anniversary of the Franco-German Elysee Treaty.
Meanwhile, at a joint news conference with Olaf Scholz, French President Emmanuel Macron did not rule out that France might send Leclerc tanks to Ukraine.
"Regarding the Leclercs, I asked the Army minister to work on it, but nothing has been ruled out," Macron said.
However, he pointed to the need to take into consideration the time needed to train Ukrainians to use the tanks, and insisted any decision must not jeopardize France's own security, adding that the move would have to be coordinated with allies such as Germany.
As German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius weighed in on the issue the same day, he said that he anticipated a decision to be made regarding the delivery of the tanks to Ukraine soon. However, he clarified to German media that Berlin would not rush in to make any hasty decisions. Earlier, German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius promised to check the army’s inventory, as Washington pressured its German allies to deliver some of the estimated 328 Leopard 2 battle tanks from the Bundeswehr’s arsenal to Ukraine. Washington has held off on deploying its own M1 Abrams tanks to the Kiev authorities, arguing their weight and supposed unsuitability to the Ukrainian terrain.
The move to hold off on sending German-made tanks for the Kiev regime by Berlin has left the US, NATO and Ukranian President Volodymyr Zelensky fuming for months. Mateusz Morawiecki. Prime Minister of Poland, which has repeatedly riled at Berlin over its hesitant stance regarding sending the highly advanced Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine, or allowing third nations to transfer them, slammed Germany's attitude as "unacceptable."
Earlier, German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius promised to check the army’s inventory, as Washington pressured its German allies to deliver some of the estimated 328 Leopard 2 battle tanks from the Bundeswehr’s arsenal to Ukraine. Washington has held off on deploying its own M1 Abrams tanks to the Kiev authorities, arguing their weight and supposed unsuitability to the Ukrainian environment.
As for Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, he pressed ahead with his oft-repeated mantra calling for more weapons deliveries to his country on January 20. However, he conceded that sending several dozen Western tanks to Ukraine could not radically change the situation, as he gave an interview to German media.
“When the Russian army, which has thousands of tanks, is in front of us, even if they give 10, 20, 50 tanks, not a single country will solve the problem,” he said. He added that the supply of Western military equipment is aimed at “motivating” Ukraine's armed forces.
Since Russia started its special military operation in Ukraine, the US and its NATO allies have been pumping Kiev with weapons which Moscow warned would have a detrimental effect on the conflict. The Russian Foreign Ministry repeatedly noted that any cargo containing weapons for Ukraine would become a legitimate target for Russia.
Russian State Duma Speaker Vyacheslav Volodin recently said that the supply of offensive armament from Western countries to Kiev will lead to a global disaster and retaliatory measures from Moscow with the use of more powerful weapons.