Only a few combat-ready German Leopard tanks left in Ukraine
In March, Germany sends 18 Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine after a long period of wrangling. Only a fraction of these are said to still be operational. Combat damage and technical wear and tear are paralyzing the combat vehicles. However, there is a lack of spare parts to make them operational again.
Only very few of the modern Leopard 2A6 main battle tanks supplied by Germany are still in service in Ukraine - Green Party budget expert Sebastian Schäfer is therefore calling for faster action to make them operational again. At the turn of the year, the defense budget expert wrote to the defence companies involved, Rheinmetall and Krauss-Maffei Wegmann (KMW): "Unfortunately, only a very small number of the battle tanks supplied can still be used by Ukraine." Repairs take a very long time because, according to the industry's repair workshop ("hub") in Lithuania, there is a lack of suitable spare parts.
Schäfer had visited the workshop in Lithuania together with Defense Minister Boris Pistorius before Christmas. According to his letters, there is an "urgent need for action" to quickly improve the spare parts situation. In addition, repair attempts by the Ukrainian army had led to further damage to the tanks. The extent to which this could be prevented through better training of mechanics or the provision of instructions or whether repairs could be carried out in Ukraine should be examined.
After much hesitation, the German government handed over a total of 18 Leopard 2 tanks from the Bundeswehr's inventory to Ukraine in March. The delivery is part of the aid against the Russian attack. The vehicles have now suffered battle damage, but some have also suffered considerable technical wear from driving and firing.
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Boris Pistorius, the German defense minister, acknowledges the urgent need for action to address the lack of spare parts for the Leopard 2 tanks delivered to Ukraine, which are currently inoperable due to battle damage and technical wear. Without adequate spare parts, it's challenging to make the remaining few German-supplied Leopard tanks operational, limiting Ukraine's ability to defend against the Attack on Ukraine and potential weapons delivery from Russia.
Source: www.ntv.de
