Germany Approves Transfer of Leopard 1 Tanks to Ukraine

After caving to pressure from inside NATO and agreeing to export over a dozen Leopard 2 tanks to Kiev, Berlin has now added its older Leopard 1s to the package of Western-made main battle tanks. Ukraine expects to receive over 100 NATO-made tanks in the “first wave.”

A German government official confirmed that Berlin authorized the transfer. “I can confirm… that an export license has been issued,” the official said without providing further information. 

Der Spiegel, a German outlet, reported the authorization was for 29 Leopard 1 tanks. The report comes just weeks after Berlin gave into arm-twisting and agreed to send its more modern Leopard 2 battle tanks to Ukraine. 

For nearly a year, the Western government rebuked Kiev’s demand for main battle tanks. The pressure mounted this winter as Russian troops began making gains in Ukraine. 

Last week, the Swiss outlet Neue Zürcher Zeitung reported that Berlin only agreed to send Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine after American President Joe Biden said the US would send Abrams tanks to Ukraine. 

Several NATO countries, including the UK, US, Germany and Poland, have now committed to sending Kiev advanced tanks, and subsequently, Moscow has carried out a series of strikes across Ukraine.